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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. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The tickets are free of ________________.
  19. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  20. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. fall — to drop
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. wound — an injury
  5. charge — electricity
  6. kick — with a leg
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. lean — to bend
  9. wound — an injury
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. lean — thin
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. fall — the season
  15. spring — a coil
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. spring — the season
  18. charge — a price
  19. kick — in football
  20. rock — music
  21. spring — of water
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. charge — in control
  24. rock — a stone

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