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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: rash · saw · nail · chest · hide · lash · snap · row

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. chest — of your body
  5. row — a line
  6. chest — a box
  7. saw — the tool
  8. rash — hasty
  9. snap — to click
  10. chest — of your body
  11. row — to paddle
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. saw — the tool
  19. snap — to snap out of it
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. rash — a series
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. nail — for a hammer

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