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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  5. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  6. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  15. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. There's no middle ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. The ________________ market has crashed.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. stock — a soup base
  5. object — an aim
  6. leaves — to go away
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. bat — the animal
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. ground — crushed
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. stock — goods
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. snap — to speak sharply
  15. object — to protest
  16. ground — the earth
  17. snap — to snap out of it
  18. snap — to click
  19. swing — to play on
  20. ground — a position
  21. swing — in golf
  22. object — a thing
  23. stock — shares
  24. swing — music

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