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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. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The ________________ took off on time.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  12. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — a straw man
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. pit — a hole
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. spring — the season
  8. cell — in biology
  9. plane — an aircraft
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. cabinet — a cupboard
  12. cell — a phone
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. pit — in a race
  15. spring — a coil
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spring — of water
  20. wax — to grow
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. plane — a tool

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