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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. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  12. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. How do you ________________ your surname?
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. last — to go on
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. fork — to eat with
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. squash — the sport
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. stem — to come from
  12. bass — the fish
  13. spell — magic
  14. mine — an explosive
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. mine — for digging
  18. bass — low music
  19. fork — in a road
  20. squash — to crush
  21. last — finally
  22. last — final
  23. spell — letters
  24. spell — a short time

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