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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 124 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 King held a masked ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  19. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a dance
  2. wind — moving air
  3. ball — a great time
  4. march — the month
  5. foot — a measure
  6. row — a line
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. march — the month
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. leaves — of a tree
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. march — music
  16. row — to paddle
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. foot — the bottom
  19. ball — a round shape
  20. wind — moving air
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. foot — part of the body

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