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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. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  22. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  23. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. object — an aim
  3. field — farmland
  4. wave — of the sea
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. field — a subject
  7. squash — to crush
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. object — to protest
  12. spring — of water
  13. field — for sport
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. spring — the season
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. spring — a coil
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. wave — with your hand
  22. squash — the sport
  23. object — a thing
  24. squash — the vegetable

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