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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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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: row · chest · mate · hand · net · ruler · snap · lash

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. ruler — for measuring
  4. net — after costs
  5. chest — a box
  6. row — to paddle
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. mate — a partner
  9. chest — of your body
  10. mate — a friend
  11. row — a line
  12. hand — in cards
  13. mate — to breed
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. hand — help
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. ruler — for measuring
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. net — in sport
  20. chest — of your body
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. net — for catching
  24. hand — part of the body

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