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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. It's one o'clock ________________.
  7. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  8. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  13. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  18. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  19. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  20. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  21. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  22. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. rest — a break
  4. cap — of ice
  5. cap — a lid
  6. sharp — exactly
  7. branch — a division
  8. jam — a tight spot
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. degree — an amount
  12. branch — of a bank
  13. cap — a hat
  14. degree — from a university
  15. sharp — with an edge
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. jam — to spread on bread
  18. rest — what's left
  19. fine — high quality
  20. fine — all right
  21. jam — in traffic
  22. rest — what's left
  23. sharp — clever
  24. degree — temperature

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