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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 120 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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. My father caught me by the ________________.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. deal — an agreement
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. deal — to handle
  6. land — a country
  7. spring — the season
  8. land — to come down
  9. spring — a coil
  10. hand — help
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. spring — of water
  16. cabinet — a cupboard
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. land — ground
  20. hand — in cards
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. deal — a big deal

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