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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 116 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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  14. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  18. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. staff — employees
  3. kid — to tease
  4. net — after costs
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. row — to paddle
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. safe — a strongbox
  10. lie — to recline
  11. staff — a stick
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. staff — employees
  15. row — a line
  16. net — for catching
  17. safe — out of danger
  18. safe — out of danger
  19. kid — child
  20. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  21. mine — for digging
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. net — in sport

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