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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Have you settled on a ________________?
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Where did you ________________ them?
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. mug — a cup
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. bark — to shout
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. rule — to rule out
  7. date — the fruit
  8. cell — a phone
  9. snap — to click
  10. bark — a dog's sound
  11. rash — hasty
  12. cell — in biology
  13. date — on the calendar
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. rash — a series
  16. mug — a face
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. mug — to rob
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. rule — a law
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. rule — government
  24. snap — to snap out of it

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