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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: file · pop · wake · leaves · lash · mate · cell · rest

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  17. Have you found your soul ________________?
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. mate — a friend
  3. file — a line of people
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. file — a tool
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. mate — to breed
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. pop — to visit
  10. wake — a trail
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. rest — what's left
  14. cell — a phone
  15. pop — soda
  16. rest — a break
  17. mate — a partner
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. cell — in biology
  20. leaves — of a tree
  21. rest — what's left
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. pop — music
  24. file — a document

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