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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: cold · shower · stick · spring · mug · ball · mate · lash

  1. Where did you ________________ them?
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  9. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  21. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  22. The King held a masked ________________.
  23. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — to rob
  2. spring — the season
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. cold — an illness
  5. mug — a face
  6. shower — to wash
  7. spring — a coil
  8. ball — a great time
  9. mug — a cup
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. spring — of water
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. shower — rain
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. mate — a partner
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. cold — not warm
  20. mate — to breed
  21. mate — a friend
  22. ball — a dance
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. lash — an eyelash

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