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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. I'll be taking the ________________.
  9. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. The ________________ went through the wall.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  20. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  21. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. season — of the year
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. cold — the Cold War
  5. cold — an illness
  6. nail — on a finger
  7. cold — not warm
  8. tube — the underground
  9. wax — to grow
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. fine — all right
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. fine — high quality
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. wax — for sculpting
  16. bear — the animal
  17. nail — for a hammer
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. bear — to put up with
  20. bear — the animal
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. season — in sport
  24. tube — a container

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