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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. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  13. Have you settled on a ________________?
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. race — humankind
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. stock — shares
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. rock — music
  9. snap — to click
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. hand — help
  12. rock — a stone
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. date — the fruit
  21. race — the arms race
  22. stock — goods
  23. hand — in cards
  24. race — a contest

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