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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. That was a fun ________________.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  17. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. game — a match
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. prune — the fruit
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. mark — a trace
  8. chest — of your body
  9. prune — to trim
  10. mark — to pay attention
  11. chest — a box
  12. chest — of your body
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. wake — a trail
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. straw — dry grass
  17. bank — for money
  18. game — wild animals
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. wake — to stop sleeping
  21. bank — of a river
  22. bank — for money
  23. mark — a grade
  24. prune — to trim

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