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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. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. The ________________ market has crashed.
  7. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  14. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. False peace will not ________________.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. last — final
  4. object — a thing
  5. stock — goods
  6. stock — shares
  7. row — a line
  8. bass — low music
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. mouse — for a computer
  11. object — an aim
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. mouse — the animal
  14. row — a quarrel
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. object — to protest
  17. bass — the fish
  18. last — finally
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. last — to go on
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. row — to paddle

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