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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. It's one o'clock ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. That was ________________ to happen.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  22. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. spring — the season
  3. staff — employees
  4. cap — a hat
  5. staff — a stick
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. spring — of water
  10. staff — employees
  11. spring — a coil
  12. sharp — exactly
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. bound — certain
  15. cap — of ice
  16. wax — for sculpting
  17. bound — tied together
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. sharp — clever
  22. wax — to grow
  23. bound — obliged
  24. cap — a lid

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