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

  1. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  2. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  13. I can't ________________ this cold.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ground — crushed
  2. stand — on your feet
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. hide — animal skin
  9. ground — a position
  10. date — the fruit
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. ground — the earth
  13. stand — to bear
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. straw — dry grass

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