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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 116 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. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. We're almost out of ________________.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  10. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. club — a group
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. pop — to visit
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. pop — soda
  6. tear — to rip
  7. wake — before a funeral
  8. club — for golf
  9. pop — music
  10. wake — to stop sleeping
  11. kid — to tease
  12. tear — from crying
  13. wake — a trail
  14. snap — to snap out of it
  15. tear — from crying
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. kid — child
  18. craft — a skill
  19. craft — boats
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. snap — to click
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. club — for dancing

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