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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  3. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  4. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. The King held a masked ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  18. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. wind — to turn a key
  3. degree — temperature
  4. ball — a great time
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. rash — a series
  9. bat — for baseball
  10. degree — from a university
  11. wind — moving air
  12. ball — a dance
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. spell — letters
  15. bat — the animal
  16. wind — moving air
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. degree — an amount
  19. spell — a short time
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. rash — hasty
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. spell — magic

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