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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 120 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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. You don't need to ________________ round.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. craft — boats
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. wake — before a funeral
  6. file — a line of people
  7. wake — a trail
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. key — in music
  10. file — a tool
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. key — the most important part
  13. cell — in biology
  14. cell — a phone
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. mine — for digging
  17. pop — music
  18. craft — a skill
  19. pop — soda
  20. key — for a lock
  21. file — a document
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. pop — to visit

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