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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. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  18. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  19. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  22. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  23. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. can — a tin
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. can — to be able to
  5. bear — the animal
  6. root — of a plant
  7. kid — child
  8. hand — help
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. bat — the animal
  11. root — the cause
  12. bat — in an idiom
  13. rest — what's left
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. bear — to put up with
  18. root — of a word
  19. can — a tin
  20. kid — to tease
  21. hand — in cards
  22. rest — a break
  23. bear — the animal
  24. bat — for baseball

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