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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  16. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. clip — a video
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. rash — hasty
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. rush — hurry
  7. hand — help
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. hand — in cards
  10. squash — to crush
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. clip — for paper
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. squash — the sport
  16. season — of the year
  17. season — in sport
  18. squash — the vegetable
  19. clip — to cut
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bark — to shout
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. rash — a series

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