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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  4. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. bear — the animal
  4. net — in sport
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. bear — to put up with
  7. net — after costs
  8. bear — the animal
  9. shower — to wash
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. rule — a law
  12. clip — for paper
  13. hand — in cards
  14. net — for catching
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. hand — help
  17. clip — a video
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. rule — government
  20. firm — decided
  21. firm — a company
  22. shower — rain
  23. firm — steady
  24. clip — to cut

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