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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. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  9. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  10. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  11. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  14. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  15. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  19. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  20. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. pitch — a sports field
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. spring — a coil
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. rash — hasty
  8. rash — a series
  9. chip — to eat
  10. pitch — a sales talk
  11. pitch — completely
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. chip — in a computer
  14. fork — to eat with
  15. roll — a cake
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. fork — in a road
  19. roll — a list
  20. chip — for betting
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. spring — of water

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