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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bear · leaves · lash · bowl · file · pop · wound · kid

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  10. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  11. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  12. You don't need to ________________ round.
  13. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  14. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  20. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. kid — child
  4. pop — music
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. file — a line of people
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. kid — to tease
  10. leaves — to go away
  11. bowl — a dish
  12. pop — to visit
  13. bowl — a football final
  14. bear — the animal
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. wound — an injury
  17. file — a document
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. leaves — of a tree
  20. bear — the animal
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bowl — to roll
  24. file — a tool

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