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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.

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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  18. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  19. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. shower — to wash
  3. last — to go on
  4. row — a line
  5. swing — music
  6. bowl — to roll
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. shower — rain
  10. sharp — with an edge
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. deal — an agreement
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. deal — to handle
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. bowl — a dish
  18. bowl — a football final
  19. last — finally
  20. last — final
  21. sharp — clever
  22. swing — to play on
  23. swing — in golf
  24. row — to paddle

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