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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 124 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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: present · clip · spring · bound · object · bat · lash · pitcher

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  13. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  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 — a whip stroke
  2. object — an aim
  3. spring — the season
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. bound — tied together
  6. clip — for paper
  7. object — to protest
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. bound — obliged
  10. spring — of water
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. clip — a video
  13. present — the time now
  14. bound — certain
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. bat — the animal
  18. spring — a coil
  19. present — there
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. present — a gift
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. clip — to cut
  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