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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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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: last · current · wake · key · march · lash · rash · hand

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  4. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  8. False peace will not ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  17. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. last — finally
  4. current — happening now
  5. key — for a lock
  6. current — electric
  7. march — the month
  8. last — to go on
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. march — music
  11. rash — hasty
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. key — the most important part
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. hand — help
  16. hand — in cards
  17. current — of water
  18. key — in music
  19. rash — a series
  20. last — final
  21. wake — a trail
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. march — the month

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