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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. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  6. When are we going to ________________?
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  21. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. What do you think of the new ________________?
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. land — a country
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. cabinet — a cupboard
  6. land — to come down
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. arm — a part of something
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. prune — to trim
  13. bat — the animal
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. land — ground
  18. date — the fruit
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. leaves — to go away
  21. leaves — lets stay
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. lash — an eyelash

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