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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. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  11. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. Have you settled on a ________________?
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  19. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. bank — for money
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. face — to point toward
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. cell — a phone
  9. land — to come down
  10. swing — in golf
  11. bank — of a river
  12. bank — for money
  13. fine — all right
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. swing — music
  17. date — the fruit
  18. fine — high quality
  19. fine — a penalty
  20. face — to confront
  21. land — a country
  22. swing — to play on
  23. face — part of the head
  24. cell — in biology

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