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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: mug · lash · charge · row · tear · straw · pitcher · face

  1. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  23. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. mug — a cup
  4. tear — to rip
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. straw — a straw man
  7. row — to paddle
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. face — to confront
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. pitcher — a jug
  12. charge — a price
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. charge — electricity
  15. tear — from crying
  16. mug — to rob
  17. mug — a face
  18. tear — from crying
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. face — part of the head
  21. charge — in control
  22. row — a quarrel
  23. face — to point toward
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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