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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. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  10. The ________________ took off on time.
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. bank — of a river
  3. perch — the fish
  4. hand — help
  5. march — the month
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. plane — a tool
  10. plane — an aircraft
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. field — for sport
  14. wound — an injury
  15. wound — an injury
  16. march — music
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. bank — for money
  19. field — a subject
  20. field — farmland
  21. bank — for money
  22. march — the month
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. lash — to lash out

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