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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  24. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. snap — to click
  5. spring — a coil
  6. snap — to speak sharply
  7. kid — child
  8. file — a tool
  9. pitch — a sports field
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. spring — the season
  12. kid — to tease
  13. dip — to sink
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. pitch — completely
  16. object — to protest
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. file — a document
  19. object — a thing
  20. spring — of water
  21. file — a line of people
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. object — an aim
  24. dip — a sauce

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