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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 120 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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  18. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  19. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. march — music
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. snap — to click
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. stock — goods
  16. march — the month
  17. snap — to speak sharply
  18. cabinet — a cupboard
  19. rush — to hurry
  20. march — the month
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. stock — a soup base
  24. stock — shares

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