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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  6. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  7. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  8. She's very handy with a ________________.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  19. When are we going to ________________?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  23. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  24. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. land — ground
  3. saw — the tool
  4. cold — not warm
  5. tube — in a tire
  6. spring — the season
  7. stem — of a plant
  8. saw — the tool
  9. tube — the underground
  10. tube — a container
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. stem — a stem cell
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. stem — to come from
  15. rock — a stone
  16. land — a country
  17. spring — of water
  18. saw — past of 'see'
  19. land — to come down
  20. cold — an illness
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. spring — a coil
  23. rock — music
  24. rock — to move gently

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