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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.

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: charge · hide · hand · lash · face · cold · net · stick

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The tickets are free of ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. She had a strange look on her ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. stick — to attach or keep to
  4. hand — in cards
  5. cold — an illness
  6. net — after costs
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. face — to confront
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. net — for catching
  11. charge — electricity
  12. face — to point toward
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. cold — not warm
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. charge — a price
  17. net — in sport
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. charge — in control
  22. hand — help
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. face — part of the head

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