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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  9. There's no middle ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  14. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  15. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. spell — magic
  3. object — an aim
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. ground — crushed
  6. spell — letters
  7. spell — a short time
  8. wake — to stop sleeping
  9. ground — a position
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. rest — what's left
  14. rest — a break
  15. hide — animal skin
  16. object — to protest
  17. mine — an explosive
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. ground — the earth
  21. rest — what's left
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. object — a thing
  24. wake — a trail

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