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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. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  6. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  10. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Have you met the new head ________________?
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  17. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  18. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. coach — pulled by horses
  3. scale — in music
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. stick — to attach or keep to
  6. rock — music
  7. scale — size or range
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. rest — a break
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. row — a line
  15. rest — what's left
  16. content — the amount
  17. content — happy
  18. row — to paddle
  19. rest — what's left
  20. rock — a stone
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. scale — for weighing
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. rock — to move gently

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