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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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  15. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. content — videos and posts
  4. mug — to rob
  5. rush — hurry
  6. cold — an illness
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. lean — thin
  10. row — a line
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. capital — a big letter
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. mug — a cup
  15. row — to paddle
  16. content — happy
  17. lean — to bend
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. cold — not warm
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. mug — a face
  22. content — the amount
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. capital — a city

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