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

Word bank: suit · swing · lash · drill · stand · rash · cold · pound

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. I can't ________________ this cold.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. suit — clothes
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. drill — the tool
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. swing — music
  7. cold — an illness
  8. drill — army training
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. rash — a series
  12. rash — hasty
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. stand — on your feet
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. cold — not warm
  18. swing — to play on
  19. stand — to bear
  20. pound — a weight
  21. swing — in golf
  22. suit — in cards
  23. drill — a practice
  24. pound — to hit hard

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