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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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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: fork · lash · rash · hand · cold · rest · plane · snap

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  17. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. hand — in cards
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. fork — in a road
  7. fork — a garden tool
  8. rash — a series
  9. fork — to eat with
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. rest — a break
  12. rash — hasty
  13. hand — help
  14. plane — a tool
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. rest — what's left
  17. rash — on the skin
  18. snap — to click
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. cold — an illness
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. cold — not warm
  24. plane — an aircraft

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