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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. wave — with your hand
  4. row — a line
  5. row — to paddle
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. wave — a sudden rise
  8. spring — the season
  9. wound — an injury
  10. stem — to come from
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — of water
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. wound — an injury
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. stem — a stem cell

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