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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: net · drill · capital · date · wind · safe · lash · wound

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. safe — a strongbox
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. net — after costs
  5. wind — moving air
  6. drill — army training
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. safe — out of danger
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. capital — money
  11. wind — moving air
  12. drill — a practice
  13. net — for catching
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — the fruit
  16. net — in sport
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. capital — a city
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. wound — an injury
  23. wound — an injury
  24. drill — the tool

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