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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.

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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. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  13. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. board — a committee
  2. rash — hasty
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wound — an injury
  8. tear — from crying
  9. rash — a series
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. wave — a sudden rise
  13. mark — to pay attention
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. board — to get on
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. mark — a trace
  19. mark — a grade
  20. board — a flat piece
  21. tear — from crying
  22. wave — with your hand
  23. tear — to rip
  24. wind — moving air

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