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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 felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. bark — to shout
  5. root — the cause
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. chair — a leader
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. root — of a plant
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. row — to paddle
  16. root — of a word
  17. chair — a professorship
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. row — a line
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. mine — for digging
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bowl — to roll

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