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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 120 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: ground · fan · lie · capital · sharp · lash · season · cold

  1. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  8. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  9. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. cold — an illness
  4. ground — a position
  5. capital — a big letter
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. sharp — clever
  8. ground — the earth
  9. lie — an untruth
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. capital — money
  13. capital — a city
  14. season — of the year
  15. cold — not warm
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. season — in sport
  18. sharp — with an edge
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. lie — to recline
  24. ground — crushed

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