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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. When are we going to ________________?
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  8. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  9. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. land — to come down
  2. fall — to drop
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. wave — of the sea
  8. land — ground
  9. fall — the season
  10. fall — to drop
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. hide — to keep secret
  13. land — a country
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. chair — a leader
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. lash — an eyelash

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