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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: date · lash · sharp · tear · root · swing · march · hide

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  5. David sat on the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  11. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  12. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  13. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  14. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Have you settled on a ________________?
  17. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  18. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  21. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  22. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. sharp — clever
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. root — of a plant
  5. swing — to play on
  6. root — of a word
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. march — the month
  9. march — music
  10. root — the cause
  11. march — the month
  12. tear — from crying
  13. hide — animal skin
  14. swing — music
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. sharp — with an edge
  18. hide — to keep secret
  19. swing — in golf
  20. date — on the calendar
  21. hide — to keep secret
  22. tear — from crying
  23. tear — to rip
  24. date — the fruit

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