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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He works in a ________________ mill.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. bass — the fish
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. net — after costs
  5. saw — the tool
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. firm — steady
  8. net — in sport
  9. saw — the tool
  10. kid — child
  11. kick — in football
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. bass — low music
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. net — for catching
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. rest — a break
  19. bass — the instrument
  20. kid — to tease
  21. rest — what's left
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. rest — what's left
  24. firm — a company

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