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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  14. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. fall — to drop
  3. fall — the season
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. game — a match
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. wound — an injury
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. wind — moving air
  13. deal — to handle
  14. board — a committee
  15. fall — to drop
  16. game — wild animals
  17. wind — moving air
  18. stem — to come from
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. board — to get on
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. wound — an injury

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