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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. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  12. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. bank — for money
  3. object — to protest
  4. last — to go on
  5. bank — of a river
  6. wake — a trail
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cell — a phone
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. object — a thing
  12. last — final
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. last — finally
  18. cell — in biology
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. bank — for money
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. object — an aim
  23. kick — in football
  24. lash — an eyelash

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