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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. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  13. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  24. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. net — for catching
  3. perch — for a bird
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. hand — part of the body
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. tube — a container
  8. net — in sport
  9. racket — for tennis
  10. game — a match
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. snap — to snap out of it
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. perch — the fish
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — in cards
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. snap — to click
  19. game — wild animals
  20. net — after costs
  21. tube — the underground
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. racket — a loud noise
  24. game — a kind of play

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