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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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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: rest · hand · court · lash · suit · wave · cold · mark

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  5. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  6. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  11. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  20. When will it ________________ you to start?
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. suit — clothes
  3. cold — not warm
  4. rest — what's left
  5. wave — of the sea
  6. hand — part of the body
  7. court — of a king
  8. mark — to pay attention
  9. cold — an illness
  10. suit — in cards
  11. wave — a sudden rise
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. mark — a trace
  15. hand — in cards
  16. court — for sport
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. rest — a break
  20. suit — to fit
  21. court — of law
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. mark — a grade
  24. rest — what's left

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