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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 116 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. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  11. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  18. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. pit — a hole
  3. mug — a cup
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. fall — the season
  6. spell — magic
  7. fall — to drop
  8. spell — letters
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. shower — rain
  11. pit — a fruit stone
  12. shower — to wash
  13. cue — for pool
  14. pit — in a race
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mug — to rob
  17. cue — a signal
  18. cue — a hint
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. spell — a short time
  21. tear — from crying
  22. fall — to drop
  23. tear — to rip
  24. mug — a face

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