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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The tickets are free of ________________.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  18. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. cold — not warm
  3. saw — the tool
  4. face — part of the head
  5. bowl — to roll
  6. bark — to shout
  7. face — to confront
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. bark — of a tree
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. charge — a price
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. squash — to crush
  16. saw — the tool
  17. bowl — a football final
  18. charge — electricity
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. squash — the sport
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. charge — in control
  23. face — to point toward
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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