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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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. The ________________ market has crashed.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. spell — letters
  4. drill — the tool
  5. lean — thin
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. object — to protest
  8. object — an aim
  9. wound — an injury
  10. bark — to shout
  11. drill — a practice
  12. stock — shares
  13. lean — to bend
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. spell — magic
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. stock — goods
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. object — a thing
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. drill — army training
  23. spell — a short time
  24. lash — to lash out

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