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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: fall · mouse · game · sharp · plane · row · lash · dip

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The ________________ took off on time.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. plane — a tool
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. fall — to drop
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. game — wild animals
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. dip — to sink
  14. mouse — the animal
  15. row — a line
  16. game — a match
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. plane — an aircraft
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. row — to paddle
  21. fall — the season
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. sharp — clever
  24. sharp — exactly

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