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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. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. She's very handy with a ________________.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  21. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  24. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — past of 'see'
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. lean — to bend
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. court — of law
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. saw — the tool
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. race — the arms race
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. court — for sport
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. saw — the tool
  16. court — of a king
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — a contest
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. wake — a trail
  21. lean — thin
  22. dip — to sink
  23. wake — before a funeral
  24. lean — to rest against

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