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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: lash · ball · rush · chest · wind · track · fall · roll

  1. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. We're on a ________________ here.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a round shape
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. fall — to drop
  4. chest — of your body
  5. fall — to drop
  6. roll — a list
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. chest — of your body
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. track — to keep track
  11. fall — the season
  12. roll — on a roll
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. wind — moving air
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. roll — a cake
  17. ball — a great time
  18. rush — hurry
  19. track — a song
  20. ball — a dance
  21. wind — moving air
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. track — a path
  24. chest — a box

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