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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  6. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  7. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. The ________________ took off on time.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. ground — the earth
  3. file — a document
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. ground — crushed
  6. file — a tool
  7. current — of water
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. current — electric
  11. ground — a position
  12. game — a match
  13. fine — high quality
  14. cell — in biology
  15. current — happening now
  16. plane — a tool
  17. fine — all right
  18. cell — a phone
  19. plane — in geometry
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. game — wild animals
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. file — a line of people
  24. plane — an aircraft

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