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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. He is an ace ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  22. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — in baseball
  2. bark — to shout
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. craft — a handicraft
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. craft — boats
  8. pitcher — a jug
  9. net — for catching
  10. scale — in music
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. cell — in biology
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — what's left
  15. cell — a phone
  16. craft — a skill
  17. rest — a break
  18. net — after costs
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. net — in sport
  22. pitcher — a jug
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. scale — size or range

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