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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 116 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: lash · swing · cold · lean · last · wind · lie · bear

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  6. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  21. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. A black ________________ roamed the forest.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. last — to go on
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. lean — thin
  6. lie — an untruth
  7. swing — to play on
  8. lie — to recline
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. lean — to rest against
  11. swing — music
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. swing — in golf
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. wind — moving air
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. cold — not warm
  18. cold — an illness
  19. bear — the animal
  20. last — final
  21. lean — to bend
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bear — the animal

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