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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: pit · degree · suit · chest · stock · nail · bark · lash

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  4. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. When will it ________________ you to start?
  12. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  23. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  24. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. suit — in cards
  3. bark — a dog's sound
  4. suit — clothes
  5. pit — in a race
  6. chest — of your body
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. stock — shares
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. suit — to fit
  12. stock — goods
  13. degree — an amount
  14. degree — from a university
  15. pit — a hole
  16. degree — temperature
  17. bark — to shout
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. chest — a box
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. nail — on a finger
  23. chest — of your body
  24. pit — a fruit stone

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