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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: snap · date · cold · stock · wind · mouse · wave · lash

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  5. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  9. The ________________ market has crashed.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. stock — goods
  5. date — the fruit
  6. snap — to click
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. stock — shares
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. wave — a sudden rise
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wind — moving air
  17. cold — not warm
  18. wind — moving air
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. mouse — the animal
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. cold — the Cold War

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