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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. You don't need to ________________ round.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. face — to point toward
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. pop — music
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. spring — the season
  8. face — to confront
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. spring — of water
  11. row — a line
  12. face — part of the head
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. wax — to grow
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. spring — a coil
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. pop — soda
  20. racket — a loud noise
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. pop — to visit
  23. row — to paddle
  24. racket — for tennis

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