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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  20. Have you settled on a ________________?
  21. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  22. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  23. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  24. Many English words ________________ from Latin.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. capital — a city
  3. game — a match
  4. date — the fruit
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. capital — a big letter
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. last — final
  10. capital — money
  11. rule — a law
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. lean — thin
  14. game — wild animals
  15. rule — government
  16. lean — to bend
  17. last — to go on
  18. last — finally
  19. stem — of a plant
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. lean — to rest against
  22. stem — a stem cell
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. stem — to come from

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