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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'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  8. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  16. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  17. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. row — to paddle
  6. cap — a lid
  7. clip — for paper
  8. wave — with your hand
  9. net — in sport
  10. cap — of ice
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lie — to recline
  13. net — for catching
  14. cap — a hat
  15. lie — an untruth
  16. row — a quarrel
  17. clip — to cut
  18. squash — to crush
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. clip — a video
  22. row — a line
  23. net — after costs
  24. wave — of the sea

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