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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: squash · dip · capital · bark · mate · face · lash · cold

  1. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  8. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  17. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.

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

Answer key

  1. face — part of the head
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. capital — money
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. bark — a dog's sound
  8. capital — a city
  9. mate — to breed
  10. dip — to sink
  11. cold — not warm
  12. cold — an illness
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. bark — of a tree
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. bark — to shout
  17. mate — a friend
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. mate — a partner
  20. face — to point toward
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. squash — to crush
  23. squash — the sport
  24. face — to confront

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