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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: snap · lash · ground · mug · shower · saw · land · sharp

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  6. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  7. It's one o'clock ________________.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  13. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  14. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  17. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. Where did you ________________ them?

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. mug — a face
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. shower — rain
  5. land — a country
  6. land — ground
  7. sharp — exactly
  8. land — to come down
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. mug — a cup
  11. sharp — clever
  12. shower — to wash
  13. sharp — with an edge
  14. ground — crushed
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. shower — a meteor shower
  17. ground — the earth
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. snap — to click
  20. saw — the tool
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. ground — a position
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. mug — to rob

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