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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  12. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. pop — music
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. clip — to cut
  5. rash — hasty
  6. fine — high quality
  7. calf — a young animal
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. clip — a video
  11. clip — for paper
  12. fine — a penalty
  13. degree — an amount
  14. pop — soda
  15. fine — all right
  16. degree — temperature
  17. rash — a series
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. degree — from a university
  22. ball — a dance
  23. ball — a great time
  24. pop — to visit

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