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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  4. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  14. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wave — with your hand
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. row — to paddle
  7. spring — the season
  8. wound — an injury
  9. spring — of water
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. row — a quarrel
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. wave — of the sea
  14. stem — a stem cell
  15. spring — a coil
  16. court — for sport
  17. lie — to recline
  18. stem — to come from
  19. row — a line
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. court — of law
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. court — of a king

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