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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 124 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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. False peace will not ________________.
  16. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  24. Recycle the empty soda ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. last — final
  4. chest — a box
  5. fine — all right
  6. clip — to cut
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. pass — to succeed
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. fine — high quality
  14. clip — a video
  15. last — to go on
  16. fan — to cool the air
  17. clip — for paper
  18. can — a tin
  19. pass — a permit
  20. can — to be able to
  21. chest — of your body
  22. chest — of your body
  23. pass — to spend time
  24. can — a tin

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