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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.

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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: stick · lash · spell · fine · wound · cabinet · chest · cell

  1. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  7. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  17. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  18. What do you think of the new ________________?
  19. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. cabinet — a cupboard
  2. fine — high quality
  3. wound — an injury
  4. fine — a penalty
  5. spell — a short time
  6. chest — a box
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. cell — in biology
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. wound — an injury
  11. fine — all right
  12. spell — letters
  13. cell — a phone
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. chest — of your body
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spell — magic
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. stick — to attach or keep to
  24. lash — an eyelash

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