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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  7. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. He works in a ________________ mill.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  16. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  17. She's very handy with a ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  21. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  22. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  23. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. fall — to drop
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. fall — the season
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. foot — part of the body
  7. fall — to drop
  8. spring — the season
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. saw — the tool
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. lean — to bend
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. spring — of water
  16. lean — thin
  17. saw — the tool
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. chest — of your body
  20. foot — a measure
  21. chest — a box
  22. foot — the bottom
  23. chest — of your body
  24. lash — an eyelash

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