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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  10. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. He works in a ________________ mill.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. can — a tin
  5. can — to be able to
  6. hand — help
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. capital — a city
  10. prune — to trim
  11. net — for catching
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. hand — in cards
  14. net — in sport
  15. capital — money
  16. prune — to trim
  17. net — after costs
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. saw — the tool
  20. mark — a trace
  21. can — a tin
  22. mark — a grade
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. saw — the tool

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