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

Word bank: stand · lash · wound · wind · file · straw · leaves · kick

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. I can't ________________ this cold.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  11. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  19. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. kick — with a leg
  3. file — a tool
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. stand — to bear
  6. wound — an injury
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. file — a document
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. wind — moving air
  11. stand — on your feet
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. kick — in football
  16. stand — for spectators
  17. wind — moving air
  18. leaves — to go away
  19. straw — a straw man
  20. file — a line of people
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. wound — an injury
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. leaves — lets stay

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