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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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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. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  7. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. When was this ________________ built?
  21. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. land — to come down
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. temple — a place of worship
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. cell — in biology
  10. wound — an injury
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. press — a publisher
  14. cell — a phone
  15. bowl — a dish
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. press — newspapers
  18. wound — an injury
  19. land — a country
  20. temple — a place of worship
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. press — to push
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. land — ground

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