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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 had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  5. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  9. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  10. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. row — to paddle
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. saw — the tool
  4. face — to confront
  5. face — part of the head
  6. row — a line
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. shower — to wash
  9. prune — to trim
  10. prune — the fruit
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. face — to point toward
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. spring — the season
  16. spring — a coil
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. saw — the tool
  19. prune — to trim
  20. kick — in football
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. shower — rain
  23. spring — of water
  24. row — a quarrel

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