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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: saw · lash · bat · present · chest · bark · lie · rash

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  3. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. She's very handy with a ________________.
  6. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  7. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  12. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. He works in a ________________ mill.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. lie — an untruth
  3. chest — a box
  4. chest — of your body
  5. saw — the tool
  6. bark — to shout
  7. lie — an untruth
  8. present — a gift
  9. rash — hasty
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. lie — to recline
  12. bark — a dog's sound
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. rash — a series
  15. saw — the tool
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. bat — the animal
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. present — there

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