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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. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  4. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. David sat on the ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. land — ground
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. plane — a tool
  7. swing — in golf
  8. kid — to tease
  9. net — in sport
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. swing — music
  12. kid — child
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. land — a country
  15. net — for catching
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. swing — to play on
  18. net — after costs
  19. dip — to sink
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. land — to come down
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  24. lash — an eyelash

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