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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. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  9. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Have you found your soul ________________?
  12. When will it ________________ you to start?
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — for baseball
  2. mate — a friend
  3. band — a ring
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. net — after costs
  6. suit — clothes
  7. band — a music group
  8. bark — to shout
  9. game — a kind of play
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. mate — a partner
  12. suit — to fit
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. game — wild animals
  16. net — for catching
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. bat — the animal
  19. net — in sport
  20. mate — to breed
  21. game — a match
  22. suit — in cards
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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