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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 116 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. drill — a practice
  3. cell — a phone
  4. drill — army training
  5. hand — in cards
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. hand — help
  9. march — the month
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. lean — thin
  13. bulb — for light
  14. cell — in biology
  15. march — music
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. drill — the tool
  19. bulb — for light
  20. wave — a sudden rise
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. lean — to bend
  23. march — the month
  24. wave — of the sea

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com