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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  3. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. wave — of the sea
  3. tube — a container
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. tube — in a tire
  7. tube — the underground
  8. deal — a big deal
  9. clip — for paper
  10. scale — size or range
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. bark — to shout
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. scale — in music
  17. season — in sport
  18. wave — a sudden rise
  19. clip — to cut
  20. deal — to handle
  21. clip — a video
  22. season — of the year
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. scale — for weighing

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