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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. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  3. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. squash — the sport
  3. rash — a series
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. bulb — for light
  8. row — a line
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. tube — a container
  12. squash — to crush
  13. cold — not warm
  14. squash — the vegetable
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. land — ground
  17. row — to paddle
  18. land — a country
  19. cold — an illness
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. tube — the underground
  22. land — to come down
  23. rash — hasty
  24. bulb — for light

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