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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The water is too ________________.
  9. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  10. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  19. That was ________________ to happen.
  20. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. ground — a position
  3. ground — crushed
  4. bound — obliged
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. bound — tied together
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. cold — not warm
  9. calf — a young animal
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. ground — the earth
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. trunk — of a car
  19. bound — certain
  20. calf — of the leg
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. cold — an illness

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