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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 124 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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  3. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. Have you found your soul ________________?
  11. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  12. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. He is an ace ________________.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. mine — for digging
  3. bark — of a tree
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. wind — moving air
  8. mate — a friend
  9. press — to push
  10. mate — a partner
  11. press — newspapers
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. swing — to play on
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. wind — moving air
  16. bark — to shout
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. swing — music
  19. swing — in golf
  20. pitcher — in baseball
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. mate — to breed
  23. press — a publisher
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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