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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  3. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  6. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  19. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  22. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. bass — the instrument
  3. face — to confront
  4. chest — a box
  5. face — to point toward
  6. bass — the fish
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. chest — of your body
  9. face — part of the head
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. fall — to drop
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. chest — of your body
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. pound — a weight
  17. can — to be able to
  18. pound — for dogs
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fall — the season
  21. bass — low music
  22. pound — to hit hard
  23. can — a tin
  24. can — a tin

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