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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 116 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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  21. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. fall — to drop
  3. swing — to play on
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bear — the animal
  6. shower — to wash
  7. fall — to drop
  8. fall — the season
  9. kid — to tease
  10. kid — child
  11. firm — a company
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. prune — to trim
  14. shower — rain
  15. shower — a meteor shower
  16. swing — music
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. prune — to trim
  20. firm — steady
  21. bear — to put up with
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. swing — in golf
  24. bear — the animal

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