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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. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  14. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?

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

Answer key

  1. plane — in geometry
  2. cold — an illness
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bore — gave birth
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. mate — to breed
  8. bore — to drill
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. file — a tool
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. plane — a tool
  13. chair — a leader
  14. firm — steady
  15. cold — not warm
  16. file — a line of people
  17. firm — a company
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. file — a document
  20. mate — a partner
  21. mate — a friend
  22. firm — decided
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. bore — to tire

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