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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  20. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  21. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  22. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  23. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  24. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. clip — to cut
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. wound — an injury
  5. pound — a weight
  6. wound — an injury
  7. craft — boats
  8. shower — to wash
  9. pound — for dogs
  10. craft — a skill
  11. shower — rain
  12. perch — the fish
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. craft — a handicraft
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. clip — for paper
  18. kick — in football
  19. perch — for a bird
  20. shower — a meteor shower
  21. wound — past of 'wind'
  22. clip — a video
  23. pound — to hit hard
  24. kick — a thrill

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