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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. The ________________ went through the wall.
  5. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. spring — the season
  4. nail — for a hammer
  5. deal — an agreement
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. deal — to handle
  8. row — a line
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. fall — to drop
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. fall — to drop
  13. spring — of water
  14. fall — the season
  15. spring — a coil
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. mine — for digging
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. row — to paddle
  21. chair — a leader
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. lash — an eyelash

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