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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  6. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  19. That must've been a ________________.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  22. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. pass — to spend time
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. last — to go on
  5. board — a flat piece
  6. pass — to succeed
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. board — a committee
  9. net — for catching
  10. clip — a video
  11. last — final
  12. pass — a permit
  13. net — in sport
  14. rush — to hurry
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. last — finally
  17. rush — hurry
  18. row — a line
  19. rush — a thrill
  20. clip — to cut
  21. clip — for paper
  22. board — to get on
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. row — to paddle

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