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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  10. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. The polar ice ________________ is melting.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. cold — not warm
  3. bark — to shout
  4. rest — what's left
  5. staff — employees
  6. scale — size or range
  7. cold — an illness
  8. rest — what's left
  9. root — of a plant
  10. cap — a lid
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. staff — a stick
  14. rest — a break
  15. cap — a hat
  16. staff — employees
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. root — the cause
  19. root — of a word
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. scale — in music
  24. cap — of ice

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