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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. That was a fun ________________.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. This piece is in a major ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  14. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  15. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. I don't want to ________________ the boat.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. game — a match
  4. bat — the animal
  5. rock — music
  6. game — wild animals
  7. field — farmland
  8. key — the most important part
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. key — in music
  11. field — a subject
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. rock — a stone
  14. game — a kind of play
  15. key — for a lock
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. field — for sport
  18. rock — to move gently

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