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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 124 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. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Have you settled on a ________________?
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  8. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  9. I can't ________________ this cold.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  20. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  23. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  24. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.

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

Answer key

  1. stand — for spectators
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. cold — not warm
  7. board — to get on
  8. lean — thin
  9. stand — to bear
  10. row — to paddle
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. stand — on your feet
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. last — finally
  17. last — to go on
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. last — final
  20. lean — to bend
  21. cold — an illness
  22. row — a line
  23. date — the fruit
  24. board — a committee

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