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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  18. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. chest — of your body
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. band — a ring
  5. content — happy
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. pitch — a sales talk
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. pitch — completely
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. prune — to trim
  13. present — a gift
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. band — a music group
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. prune — to trim
  18. content — videos and posts
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. chest — of your body
  21. present — the time now
  22. present — there
  23. content — the amount
  24. chest — a box

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