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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  3. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  4. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  5. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  8. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. race — humankind
  3. bowl — a dish
  4. jam — a tight spot
  5. clip — for paper
  6. clip — to cut
  7. jam — to spread on bread
  8. jam — in traffic
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. scale — for weighing
  11. scale — size or range
  12. bowl — a football final
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. race — a contest
  17. hand — in cards
  18. race — the arms race
  19. scale — in music
  20. hand — help
  21. foot — the bottom
  22. clip — a video
  23. foot — a measure
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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