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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: cell · wake · net · date · nail · content · lash · stick

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The ________________ went through the wall.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. date — on the calendar
  4. content — happy
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. date — the fruit
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. wake — a trail
  10. net — in sport
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. net — for catching
  14. net — after costs
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. cell — a phone
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. cell — in biology
  19. content — the amount
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. wake — before a funeral

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