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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  17. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  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. lash — a whip stroke
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. ball — a dance
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. mark — a grade
  7. squash — to crush
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. club — for dancing
  12. straw — a straw man
  13. stem — to come from
  14. squash — the sport
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. mark — a trace
  17. club — for golf
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. club — a group
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. ball — a great 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