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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  4. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. When will it ________________ you to start?
  22. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  23. Where did you ________________ them?
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. mug — a face
  3. suit — clothes
  4. land — a country
  5. cell — in biology
  6. march — music
  7. land — to come down
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. court — of law
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. land — ground
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. suit — in cards
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. mug — a cup
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. cell — a phone
  18. march — the month
  19. court — for sport
  20. court — of a king
  21. suit — to fit
  22. march — the month
  23. mug — to rob
  24. cell — in a prison

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