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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: dip · toast · tear · hide · spring · lash · saw · staff

  1. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. He works in a ________________ mill.

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

Answer key

  1. hide — to keep secret
  2. staff — employees
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. tear — from crying
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. toast — the most admired
  8. tear — from crying
  9. saw — past of 'see'
  10. spring — a coil
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. spring — the season
  13. toast — a drink to someone
  14. tear — to rip
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. staff — a stick
  18. toast — bread
  19. saw — the tool
  20. hide — animal skin
  21. dip — to sink
  22. spring — of water
  23. staff — employees
  24. saw — the 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