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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  14. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  15. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. wound — an injury
  3. staff — employees
  4. net — for catching
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. wake — a trail
  9. wound — an injury
  10. staff — a stick
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. wake — to stop sleeping
  14. bark — a dog's sound
  15. bark — of a tree
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. staff — employees
  19. bark — to shout
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — after costs
  24. cabinet — a cupboard

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