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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. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  3. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  14. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. board — a flat piece
  3. board — a committee
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. lie — to recline
  6. wake — a trail
  7. board — to get on
  8. chair — a leader
  9. wake — to stop sleeping
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. straw — dry grass
  12. spring — the season
  13. band — a rubber band
  14. spring — a coil
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. band — a music group
  19. wake — before a funeral
  20. spring — of water
  21. band — a ring
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. lie — an untruth
  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