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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 116 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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  5. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. The ________________ went through the wall.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. nail — on a finger
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. snap — to click
  5. nail — for a hammer
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. net — in sport
  9. nail — for a hammer
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. sharp — clever
  12. cell — a phone
  13. net — for catching
  14. cell — in biology
  15. rule — a law
  16. staff — employees
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. rule — to rule out
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. staff — a stick
  21. rule — government
  22. staff — employees
  23. sharp — with an edge
  24. lash — to lash out

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