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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 116 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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  24. The ________________ change colour in autumn.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. leaves — to go away
  3. snap — to click
  4. wind — moving air
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. row — to paddle
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. cue — a hint
  10. cue — a signal
  11. row — a line
  12. track — a path
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. track — to keep track
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. wind — moving air
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. cue — for pool
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. track — a song
  24. leaves — of a tree

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