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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.

Make a worksheet

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: wound · lash · scale · ground · hide · key · court · date

  1. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. Have you settled on a ________________?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. The ball is in your ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. wound — an injury
  3. ground — crushed
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. hide — to keep secret
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. scale — size or range
  8. date — the fruit
  9. date — on the calendar
  10. scale — in music
  11. key — for a lock
  12. court — of a king
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. court — of law
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. key — in music
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. key — the most important part
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. ground — the earth
  22. ground — a position
  23. wound — an injury
  24. court — for sport

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