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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. saw — the tool
  3. ball — a great time
  4. ball — a dance
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. present — a gift
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. last — to go on
  11. saw — the tool
  12. drill — army training
  13. hand — help
  14. last — finally
  15. drill — the tool
  16. drill — a practice
  17. present — there
  18. present — the time now
  19. lean — thin
  20. lean — to bend
  21. ball — a round shape
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. hand — in cards
  24. last — final

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