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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. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. False peace will not ________________.
  10. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  14. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. last — final
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. rush — hurry
  7. file — a document
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. last — to go on
  10. season — in sport
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. file — a tool
  13. deal — an agreement
  14. deal — to handle
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. squash — to crush
  19. file — a line of people
  20. season — of the year
  21. row — a line
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. squash — the sport
  24. row — to paddle

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