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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 120 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 · wound · bank · chip · ball · spell · rock · lash

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  6. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  11. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.
  19. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  23. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  24. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. wound — past of 'wind'
  3. cold — an illness
  4. spell — magic
  5. bank — of a river
  6. bank — for money
  7. wound — an injury
  8. spell — a short time
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. ball — a great time
  11. chip — in a computer
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. spell — letters
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rock — music
  17. cold — not warm
  18. ball — a dance
  19. bank — for money
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. chip — to eat
  23. rock — a stone
  24. chip — for betting

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