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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the button?
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  21. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  22. How do you ________________ your surname?
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. court — for sport
  3. spell — magic
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. spell — a short time
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. press — a publisher
  9. race — humankind
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. press — to push
  12. shower — rain
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. press — newspapers
  15. race — the arms race
  16. clip — a video
  17. shower — to wash
  18. clip — to cut
  19. clip — for paper
  20. race — a contest
  21. court — of a king
  22. spell — letters
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. court — of law

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