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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: swing · stick · lash · snap · pound · fall · chest · perch

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. David sat on the ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. snap — to snap out of it
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. swing — to play on
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. chest — a box
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — to drop
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. chest — of your body
  11. swing — in golf
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. swing — music
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. perch — the fish
  20. pound — a weight
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. chest — of your body
  23. fall — the season
  24. perch — for a bird

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