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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  3. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. last — final
  3. march — the month
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. net — in sport
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bass — the fish
  9. march — the month
  10. last — finally
  11. net — for catching
  12. club — for golf
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. spring — a coil
  15. spring — of water
  16. bass — the instrument
  17. last — to go on
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. march — music
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. club — a group
  22. spring — the season
  23. bass — low music
  24. net — after costs

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