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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 120 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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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: wind · band · drill · club · ground · lash · sharp · temple

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  3. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. There's no middle ________________.
  17. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. sharp — with an edge
  3. band — a ring
  4. ground — the earth
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. club — for dancing
  7. sharp — clever
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. drill — army training
  12. drill — the tool
  13. club — for golf
  14. club — a group
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. ground — a position
  17. temple — side of the head
  18. wind — moving air
  19. ground — crushed
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. wind — moving air
  22. band — a music group
  23. drill — a practice
  24. band — a rubber band

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