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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 116 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.

Words on the sheet
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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. band — a music group
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — to trim
  7. tube — the underground
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. chair — a leader
  12. kick — in football
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. cold — not warm
  16. band — a ring
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. pass — a permit
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. pass — to spend time
  23. tube — a container
  24. cold — the Cold War

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