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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. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. drill — army training
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — the fruit
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. lie — to recline
  10. degree — an amount
  11. degree — from a university
  12. drill — the tool
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. swing — in golf
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. game — wild animals
  17. drill — a practice
  18. swing — to play on
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. swing — music
  21. degree — temperature
  22. prune — to trim
  23. game — a match
  24. leaves — to go away

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