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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  6. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  7. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  8. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  18. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. hand — in cards
  3. perch — the fish
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. last — final
  6. perch — for a bird
  7. chest — of your body
  8. dip — a sauce
  9. hand — help
  10. last — finally
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. pit — a hole
  14. pit — in a race
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. chest — of your body
  17. pit — a fruit stone
  18. perch — for a bird
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. chest — a box
  21. plane — a tool
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. last — to go on

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