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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: leaves · plane · shower · key · lash · bat · straw · last

  1. The ________________ took off on time.
  2. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  3. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  4. This piece is in a major ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  20. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — an aircraft
  2. shower — a meteor shower
  3. leaves — of a tree
  4. key — in music
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. last — to go on
  7. bat — the animal
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. shower — to wash
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. shower — rain
  14. leaves — to go away
  15. key — for a lock
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. last — final
  18. last — finally
  19. key — the most important part
  20. straw — dry grass
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. plane — a tool
  24. plane — in geometry

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