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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. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  9. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  16. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The players ran onto the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. hand — part of the body
  4. capital — money
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. spell — a short time
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. hide — to keep secret
  9. hand — in cards
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. wound — an injury
  12. capital — a city
  13. spell — letters
  14. wound — an injury
  15. pitch — completely
  16. leaves — lets stay
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. spell — magic
  22. hand — help
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. pitch — a sports field

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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