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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. She's very handy with a ________________.
  8. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  13. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  23. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. spring — of water
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. band — a music group
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. saw — the tool
  8. chair — to sit on
  9. wind — moving air
  10. spring — the season
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. wind — moving air
  13. wind — to turn a key
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. spring — a coil
  16. band — a ring
  17. chair — a leader
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. kid — to tease
  20. chair — a professorship
  21. saw — the tool
  22. cap — of ice
  23. cap — a lid
  24. cap — a hat

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