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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 120 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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  9. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  20. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  24. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. season — of the year
  4. march — the month
  5. bound — certain
  6. wind — moving air
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. trunk — of a tree
  9. trunk — of an elephant
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. march — music
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. tear — from crying
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. tear — from crying
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. club — a group
  18. bound — obliged
  19. tear — to rip
  20. march — the month
  21. wind — moving air
  22. bound — tied together
  23. club — for golf
  24. club — for dancing

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