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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 kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  16. The King held a masked ________________.
  17. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. file — a document
  3. season — in sport
  4. season — of the year
  5. wind — to turn a key
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. deal — a big deal
  10. wind — moving air
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. file — a tool
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. deal — to handle
  16. ball — a dance
  17. snap — to click
  18. wind — moving air
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. file — a line of people
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. ball — a great time

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