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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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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: tear · chip · spring · drill · rest · lash · roll · straw

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  21. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  22. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  23. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. chip — to eat
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. spring — of water
  5. spring — the season
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. drill — a practice
  8. tear — from crying
  9. drill — army training
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. spring — a coil
  12. rest — what's left
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. chip — for betting
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. drill — the tool
  17. rest — a break
  18. tear — to rip
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. rest — what's left
  21. tear — from crying
  22. roll — a cake
  23. roll — a list
  24. straw — a straw man

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