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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  10. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  17. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  21. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  24. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. toast — the most admired
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. tube — a container
  7. tube — the underground
  8. last — final
  9. toast — a drink to someone
  10. board — a flat piece
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. board — a committee
  15. bat — the animal
  16. tube — in a tire
  17. toast — bread
  18. bark — to shout
  19. last — to go on
  20. bark — of a tree
  21. snap — to click
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. last — finally
  24. board — to get on

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