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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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. It's one o'clock ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  22. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  23. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. kick — in football
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. sharp — clever
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. prune — to trim
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. prune — the fruit
  12. bat — the animal
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. march — the month
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. march — the month
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. sharp — exactly
  20. prune — to trim
  21. nail — on a finger
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. march — music
  24. fan — to cool the air

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