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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 120 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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Have you found your soul ________________?
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  7. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  8. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  19. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  20. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  21. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. mate — a partner
  3. snap — to click
  4. bass — low music
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. race — humankind
  7. race — the arms race
  8. mate — a friend
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. track — to keep track
  12. track — a song
  13. face — part of the head
  14. net — in sport
  15. race — a contest
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. face — to point toward
  19. face — to confront
  20. track — a path
  21. net — for catching
  22. bass — the fish
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. net — after costs

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