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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 spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ took off on time.
  13. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  18. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. fall — the season
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. key — in music
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. deal — to handle
  9. fall — to drop
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. plane — an aircraft
  13. plane — a tool
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. key — for a lock
  18. bat — the animal
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. key — the most important part
  21. row — a line
  22. row — to paddle
  23. band — a ring
  24. band — a music group

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