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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 always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Did you ________________ the meat?
  20. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  21. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. leaves — lets stay
  2. swing — to play on
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. swing — in golf
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. wave — of the sea
  11. shower — to wash
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. season — of the year
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — to shout
  16. snap — to click
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. season — to add flavour
  20. shower — rain
  21. season — in sport
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. swing — music
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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