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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: cell · snap · rest · row · current · swing · lash · tear

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. cell — a phone
  4. current — happening now
  5. rest — what's left
  6. row — to paddle
  7. current — of water
  8. swing — in golf
  9. swing — to play on
  10. rest — what's left
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. snap — to click
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. tear — from crying
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. rest — a break
  19. row — a line
  20. tear — to rip
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. tear — from crying
  23. swing — music
  24. current — electric

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