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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: bark · nail · degree · mouse · lash · snap · foot · hand

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  10. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  20. The ________________ went through the wall.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. snap — to click
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. foot — a measure
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. degree — temperature
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. bark — of a tree
  10. bark — to shout
  11. hand — help
  12. hand — in cards
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. degree — an amount
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. degree — from a university
  19. snap — to speak sharply
  20. nail — for a hammer
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. mouse — the animal

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