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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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468
Word bank
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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. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The King held a masked ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  20. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  24. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. stand — to bear
  3. fork — in a road
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bowl — to roll
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. bore — to tire
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. cold — not warm
  14. stand — for spectators
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. rule — a law
  17. ball — a dance
  18. cold — an illness
  19. stand — on your feet
  20. bowl — a football final
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. ball — a great time
  23. rule — government
  24. fork — to eat with

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