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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  22. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. capital — money
  3. pit — a hole
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. wind — moving air
  6. prune — to trim
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. wind — moving air
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. capital — a city
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. hide — to keep secret
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. pit — in a race
  19. prune — to trim
  20. cell — a phone
  21. prune — the fruit
  22. cell — in biology
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. dip — to sink

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