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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: cold · fan · squash · drill · stick · lash · key · rash

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  6. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  9. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  14. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. This piece is in a major ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. cold — an illness
  5. rash — a series
  6. squash — the sport
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. stick — a piece of wood
  9. squash — to crush
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. cold — the Cold War
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. drill — a practice
  14. drill — army training
  15. cold — not warm
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. key — in music
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. key — the most important part
  21. rash — hasty
  22. key — for a lock
  23. drill — the tool
  24. fan — a supporter

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