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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. That must've been a ________________.
  4. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  5. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  13. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. The King held a masked ________________.
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. rush — a thrill
  4. rule — a law
  5. clip — a video
  6. clip — to cut
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. ball — a round shape
  10. swing — in golf
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. swing — music
  13. ball — a great time
  14. rule — government
  15. ball — a dance
  16. ground — a position
  17. ground — crushed
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. clip — for paper
  20. rush — hurry
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. ground — the earth
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. rule — to rule 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