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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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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: lash · ground · snap · bark · squash · toast · last · land

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  16. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  19. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. last — to go on
  3. bark — to shout
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. ground — crushed
  7. squash — to crush
  8. last — final
  9. land — to come down
  10. squash — the vegetable
  11. snap — to click
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. land — a country
  14. toast — bread
  15. last — finally
  16. toast — the most admired
  17. land — ground
  18. bark — of a tree
  19. ground — the earth
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. ground — a position
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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