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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  8. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  9. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. kid — to tease
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. pound — for dogs
  8. patient — calm and waiting
  9. patient — a sick person
  10. pound — a weight
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. fork — a garden tool
  13. wind — moving air
  14. last — to go on
  15. wind — moving air
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. fork — in a road
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. last — finally
  22. kid — child
  23. rush — hurry
  24. fork — to eat with

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