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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: fall · chest · club · rash · mate · prune · nail · lash

  1. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  8. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — the season
  2. fall — to drop
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. fall — to drop
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. nail — on a finger
  8. prune — the fruit
  9. mate — to breed
  10. club — for golf
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — of your body
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. mate — a friend
  15. club — for dancing
  16. prune — to trim
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. prune — to trim
  19. mate — a partner
  20. rash — hasty
  21. rash — a series
  22. chest — a box
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. club — a group

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