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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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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: lash · bowl · date · tear · fall · present · spring · scale

  1. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  2. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  3. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  4. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  12. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  13. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Have you settled on a ________________?
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a football final
  2. date — the fruit
  3. scale — in music
  4. tear — from crying
  5. fall — the season
  6. scale — for weighing
  7. spring — of water
  8. present — there
  9. fall — to drop
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. fall — to drop
  12. bowl — to roll
  13. present — a gift
  14. tear — from crying
  15. scale — size or range
  16. tear — to rip
  17. date — on the calendar
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. present — the time now
  21. spring — a coil
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. spring — the season

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