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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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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: last · shower · wind · bat · mug · bank · lie · lash

  1. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  8. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. False peace will not ________________.
  14. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  15. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.

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

Answer key

  1. last — finally
  2. bank — for money
  3. bank — of a river
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — an untruth
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. mug — a face
  8. wind — moving air
  9. last — final
  10. lie — to recline
  11. shower — rain
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. last — to go on
  14. bank — for money
  15. shower — to wash
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. mug — to rob
  18. mug — a cup
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. wind — moving air
  24. bat — 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