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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. We're on a ________________ here.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. There's no middle ________________.
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. What do you think of the new ________________?
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. pitcher — a jug
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. roll — a cake
  5. sharp — clever
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. ground — crushed
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. sharp — with an edge
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. row — to paddle
  15. row — a line
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. roll — on a roll
  18. cell — in biology
  19. ground — a position
  20. ground — the earth
  21. cabinet — ministers
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. roll — a list
  24. cell — a phone

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