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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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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  4. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  7. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. David sat on the ________________.
  21. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The tickets are free of ________________.
  24. This looks like a gunshot ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. file — a tool
  3. charge — electricity
  4. chip — to eat
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. cell — in biology
  7. swing — music
  8. wound — an injury
  9. chip — for betting
  10. cell — a phone
  11. fall — to drop
  12. charge — in control
  13. file — a line of people
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. swing — in golf
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. file — a document
  18. fall — to drop
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. swing — to play on
  21. chip — in a computer
  22. fall — the season
  23. charge — a price
  24. wound — an injury

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