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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: ruler · sharp · cold · lash · bat · bear · ball · ground

  1. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  17. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. ruler — for measuring
  2. ground — the earth
  3. ball — a dance
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. cold — not warm
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. sharp — clever
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. ball — a great time
  12. ground — crushed
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. bear — the animal
  17. ruler — a monarch
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. bear — the animal
  22. bat — the animal
  23. ground — a position
  24. cold — an illness

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