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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  5. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  6. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  9. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  16. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  17. Did you ________________ the meat?
  18. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  19. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. cold — not warm
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. season — of the year
  5. rock — to move gently
  6. wind — to turn a key
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. vault — in gymnastics
  9. fork — a garden tool
  10. season — in sport
  11. vault — an arched ceiling
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. wind — moving air
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. trunk — of an elephant
  16. vault — a safe
  17. season — to add flavour
  18. rock — music
  19. fork — to eat with
  20. fork — in a road
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. rock — a stone
  23. cold — an illness
  24. cold — the Cold War

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