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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 116 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: fall · rest · lash · staff · mine · present · swing · wound

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  13. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  14. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. fall — to drop
  3. staff — a stick
  4. present — there
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. fall — to drop
  8. swing — in golf
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. staff — employees
  11. rest — what's left
  12. present — the time now
  13. rest — a break
  14. rest — what's left
  15. fall — the season
  16. present — a gift
  17. wound — an injury
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. swing — music
  20. wound — past of 'wind'
  21. mine — for digging
  22. staff — employees
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. wound — an injury

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