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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 hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  9. We're on a ________________ here.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — part of the body
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. net — after costs
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. coach — pulled by horses
  6. rash — a series
  7. rash — hasty
  8. roll — a list
  9. roll — on a roll
  10. net — in sport
  11. hand — in cards
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. net — for catching
  15. press — to push
  16. press — a publisher
  17. roll — a cake
  18. press — newspapers
  19. hand — help
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. date — the fruit

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