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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: lash · face · spring · chair · land · hand · straw · tear

  1. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  8. When are we going to ________________?
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  13. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — of water
  2. tear — to rip
  3. land — a country
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. face — to confront
  6. spring — a coil
  7. chair — a leader
  8. land — to come down
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. chair — to sit on
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. hand — help
  13. straw — to clutch at straws
  14. face — part of the head
  15. tear — from crying
  16. land — ground
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. hand — in cards
  19. face — to point toward
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. chair — a professorship
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. tear — from crying
  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