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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: chest · hand · ground · lash · cold · can · toast · date

  1. Have you settled on a ________________?
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. There's no middle ________________.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  14. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The water is too ________________.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  23. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  24. ________________ you help me carry this box?

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

Answer key

  1. date — on the calendar
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. can — a tin
  5. chest — of your body
  6. ground — a position
  7. hand — help
  8. chest — of your body
  9. chest — a box
  10. date — the fruit
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. hand — in cards
  13. cold — the Cold War
  14. toast — bread
  15. can — a tin
  16. ground — the earth
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. toast — a drink to someone
  19. cold — an illness
  20. cold — not warm
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. ground — crushed
  24. can — to be able to

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