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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 120 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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
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Word bank
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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. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. You don't need to ________________ round.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  12. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  18. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. lean — to bend
  3. lean — thin
  4. pop — to visit
  5. pop — music
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. cold — the Cold War
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. plane — a tool
  15. cold — an illness
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. perch — the fish
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. cold — not warm

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