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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 116 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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Word bank
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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. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  15. He was locked up in a ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bass — the fish
  2. pit — a hole
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. cell — a phone
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. rule — to rule out
  9. last — finally
  10. bass — low music
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. last — to go on
  13. wind — moving air
  14. rule — government
  15. cell — in a prison
  16. rule — a law
  17. last — final
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pit — in a race
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. cell — in biology
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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