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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. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  2. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. The ________________ took off on time.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  14. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. David sat on the ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — decided
  2. plane — in geometry
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. board — to get on
  5. firm — steady
  6. chip — to eat
  7. plane — an aircraft
  8. swing — in golf
  9. bat — the animal
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. plane — a tool
  13. board — a committee
  14. board — a flat piece
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. chip — in a computer
  17. firm — a company
  18. swing — to play on
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. cold — not warm
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. chip — for betting
  23. swing — music
  24. cold — an illness

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