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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. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  16. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  23. The ________________ went through the wall.
  24. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.

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. lash — a whip stroke
  4. track — to keep track
  5. tear — from crying
  6. cue — a hint
  7. spring — the season
  8. wind — moving air
  9. track — a song
  10. root — the cause
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. track — a path
  14. spring — of water
  15. nail — on a finger
  16. spring — a coil
  17. root — of a word
  18. cue — for pool
  19. cue — a signal
  20. wind — moving air
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. root — of a plant
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. tear — to rip

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