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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. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  21. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  22. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. row — to paddle
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. lean — to bend
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. rash — a series
  12. tear — from crying
  13. rash — hasty
  14. lean — thin
  15. row — a line
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lean — to rest against
  19. tear — from crying
  20. cabinet — a cupboard
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. stem — to come from
  23. tear — to rip
  24. fan — to cool the air

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