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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: hide · lash · cold · mine · toast · chip · saw · fine

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  24. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. toast — bread
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. fine — a penalty
  8. mine — for digging
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. chip — to eat
  11. fine — all right
  12. cold — not warm
  13. saw — the tool
  14. saw — the tool
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. chip — for betting
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. saw — past of 'see'
  20. cold — an illness
  21. hide — animal skin
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. hide — to keep secret
  24. fine — high quality

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