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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  22. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  23. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. row — to paddle
  6. board — a committee
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. rash — hasty
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. board — to get on
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. scale — in music
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. sharp — clever
  16. row — a line
  17. rash — a series
  18. scale — for weighing
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. mark — a grade
  22. wake — a trail
  23. scale — size or range
  24. mark — a trace

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