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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: lash · rash · roll · key · spring · date · row · mine

  1. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. Don't do anything ________________.
  5. Have you settled on a ________________?
  6. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  14. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  15. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. spring — a coil
  4. rash — hasty
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. roll — a cake
  7. spring — the season
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. roll — a list
  10. key — in music
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. key — for a lock
  13. mine — belonging to me
  14. rash — on the skin
  15. key — the most important part
  16. mine — for digging
  17. row — a line
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. row — to paddle
  20. rash — a series
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. spring — of water
  23. row — a quarrel
  24. date — the fruit

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