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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.

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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: bark · last · lash · season · tear · fall · wind · rush

  1. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  2. False peace will not ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  15. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bark — to shout
  2. last — to go on
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. fall — to drop
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. tear — to rip
  8. tear — from crying
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. season — of the year
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. fall — to drop
  14. last — final
  15. rush — hurry
  16. tear — from crying
  17. rush — to hurry
  18. last — finally
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. fall — the season
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. wind — moving air
  23. wind — moving air
  24. season — in 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