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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.

Words on the sheet
468
Word bank
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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. My father caught me by the ________________.
  21. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  22. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  23. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. arm — a part of something
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. perch — the fish
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. clip — for paper
  9. rock — music
  10. clip — a video
  11. drill — a practice
  12. clip — to cut
  13. rock — to move gently
  14. kid — to tease
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. kid — child
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. rock — a stone
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. arm — part of the body
  21. drill — the tool
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. drill — army training
  24. patient — a sick person

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