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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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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: spring · wound · dip · tube · foot · calf · lash · sharp

  1. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. I'll be taking the ________________.
  8. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  9. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. It's one o'clock ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  21. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. We ________________ up on opposing sides.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. spring — the season
  3. sharp — with an edge
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. sharp — clever
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. tube — the underground
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. foot — part of the body
  10. spring — of water
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. foot — a measure
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. wound — an injury
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. dip — to sink
  17. sharp — exactly
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. spring — a coil
  20. tube — a container
  21. calf — of the leg
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. wound — past of 'wind'

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