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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 spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  8. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  19. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  20. False peace will not ________________.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. cold — not warm
  4. hide — animal skin
  5. cold — an illness
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. capital — money
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. last — finally
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. squash — to crush
  13. last — final
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. straw — a straw man
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. capital — a city
  18. squash — the sport
  19. squash — the vegetable
  20. last — to go on
  21. mine — for digging
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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