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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The ________________ went through the wall.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  23. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. cold — an illness
  5. vault — in gymnastics
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. wound — an injury
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. dip — to dunk
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. chip — to eat
  15. chip — for betting
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. land — to come down
  18. dip — to sink
  19. wound — an injury
  20. dip — a sauce
  21. land — a country
  22. vault — a safe
  23. land — ground
  24. cold — the Cold War

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