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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  13. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. club — for golf
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. plane — a tool
  4. cold — an illness
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bore — to drill
  8. fan — to cool the air
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. cold — not warm
  11. march — the month
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. club — for dancing
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. march — music
  16. fall — to drop
  17. fall — the season
  18. march — the month
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. club — a group
  21. fall — to drop
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. bore — to tire

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