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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. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. False peace will not ________________.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. object — an aim
  3. hand — help
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. last — to go on
  6. last — finally
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. file — a line of people
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. object — to protest
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. object — a thing
  14. file — a document
  15. last — final
  16. wake — before a funeral
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. mine — for digging
  21. wake — a trail
  22. hand — in cards
  23. file — a tool
  24. hand — part of the body

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