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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 116 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: pitch · kid · bulb · leaves · snap · rest · cold · lash

  1. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  10. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  22. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — what's left
  2. snap — to click
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. rest — a break
  5. pitch — a sales talk
  6. cold — an illness
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. kid — child
  10. pitch — a sports field
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. bulb — for light
  14. rest — what's left
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. bulb — for light
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. pitch — completely
  21. leaves — of a tree
  22. kid — to tease
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. leaves — to go away

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