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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: rest · bark · rash · swing · bat · lash · bay · content

  1. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  7. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  8. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. My mare is ________________ in color.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. David sat on the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — of a tree
  2. bark — to shout
  3. swing — music
  4. rest — a break
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. bark — a dog's sound
  7. rest — what's left
  8. rest — what's left
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. bay — a part of the sea
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. content — happy
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. rash — a series
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. content — the amount
  19. bay — a horse colour
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. swing — in golf
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. rash — hasty
  24. swing — to play on

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