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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  3. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  6. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  17. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  18. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  19. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. can — a tin
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. game — wild animals
  6. pound — for dogs
  7. pop — to visit
  8. cold — an illness
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. cold — not warm
  12. lie — to recline
  13. game — a match
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. pop — soda
  16. pop — music
  17. cold — the Cold War
  18. pound — to hit hard
  19. pound — a weight
  20. can — a tin
  21. wake — a trail
  22. can — to be able to
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. lie — an untruth

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