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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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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: spring · kick · fan · lash · cell · club · hide · mine

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  12. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  13. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  24. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. cell — a phone
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. spring — of water
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. spring — a coil
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. club — for golf
  12. club — for dancing
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. hide — animal skin
  17. spring — the season
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. club — a group
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. cell — in biology
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. kick — in football
  24. hide — to keep secret

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