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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The King held a masked ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The tickets are free of ________________.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. ball — a dance
  3. land — to come down
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. land — a country
  6. ball — a round shape
  7. wake — a trail
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. ball — a great time
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. file — a tool
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — a division
  15. leaves — to go away
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. charge — a price
  18. file — a line of people
  19. land — ground
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. charge — in control
  22. charge — electricity
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. file — a document

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