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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  10. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  11. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  14. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  15. The tickets are free of ________________.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  18. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. We took cover from the thunder ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. fork — in a road
  7. hand — in cards
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. charge — in control
  10. tear — from crying
  11. hide — animal skin
  12. hand — help
  13. perch — the fish
  14. shower — to wash
  15. charge — a price
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. charge — electricity
  18. fork — a garden tool
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. tear — to rip
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. tear — from crying
  24. shower — rain

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