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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  4. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  5. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  6. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  7. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  8. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  11. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  16. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  17. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. tear — from crying
  3. stem — to come from
  4. wind — to turn a key
  5. chip — to eat
  6. tear — to rip
  7. club — a group
  8. rule — a law
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. club — for dancing
  11. wind — moving air
  12. tear — from crying
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. land — ground
  15. rule — to rule out
  16. land — a country
  17. rule — government
  18. wind — moving air
  19. stem — a stem cell
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. club — for golf
  23. land — to come down
  24. chip — for betting

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