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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. He works in a ________________ mill.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  18. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  19. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. ground — crushed
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. wind — moving air
  5. content — happy
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. ground — the earth
  9. safe — out of danger
  10. row — a line
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. saw — the tool
  13. ground — a position
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. patient — a sick person
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. safe — a strongbox
  18. content — the amount
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. row — to paddle
  21. wind — moving air
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. saw — the tool

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