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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. There's no middle ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  15. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  19. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  22. That was ________________ to happen.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. tear — from crying
  3. ground — a position
  4. fall — the season
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. ground — crushed
  7. bowl — a dish
  8. tear — to rip
  9. bass — low music
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. bass — the fish
  12. fall — to drop
  13. fall — to drop
  14. bowl — to roll
  15. wave — of the sea
  16. ground — the earth
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. bass — the instrument
  19. bound — tied together
  20. tear — from crying
  21. wave — a sudden rise
  22. bound — certain
  23. bound — obliged
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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