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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 hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  2. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  19. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  24. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — to recline
  2. arm — part of the body
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. wind — moving air
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. field — farmland
  7. rush — hurry
  8. fork — to eat with
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. fork — in a road
  13. bore — to drill
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bore — to tire
  18. field — for sport
  19. arm — a part of something
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. field — a subject
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. wind — moving air

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