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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. False peace will not ________________.
  3. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  8. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. That must've been a ________________.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  20. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. last — to go on
  3. rush — hurry
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. swing — music
  6. last — finally
  7. chair — a professorship
  8. hand — part of the body
  9. chair — a leader
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. stem — of a plant
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. swing — in golf
  14. rush — a thrill
  15. last — final
  16. swing — to play on
  17. hand — in cards
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. stem — to come from
  20. rush — to hurry
  21. hand — help
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. straw — dry grass

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