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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 haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The ________________ went through the wall.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  9. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  13. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  17. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  18. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. nail — for a hammer
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. stem — to come from
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. stem — a stem cell
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. stem — of a plant
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. cap — a lid
  17. hide — animal skin
  18. nail — on a finger
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. cap — of ice
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. cap — a hat

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