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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 120 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 a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  4. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He is an ace ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. ball — a great time
  3. season — in sport
  4. charge — electricity
  5. row — to paddle
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. shower — a meteor shower
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. ball — a dance
  11. row — a line
  12. pitcher — in baseball
  13. shower — to wash
  14. charge — a price
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. clip — for paper
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. clip — a video
  19. season — of the year
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. clip — to cut
  22. charge — in control
  23. shower — rain
  24. lash — an eyelash

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