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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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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  7. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  8. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  24. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. net — after costs
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. march — music
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. object — to protest
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. net — in sport
  10. current — of water
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. branch — a division
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. net — for catching
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. object — an aim
  21. current — happening now
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. current — electric
  24. object — a thing

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