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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. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  6. How do you ________________ your surname?
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  17. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. field — farmland
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. spell — magic
  5. leaves — lets stay
  6. spell — letters
  7. staff — a stick
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. staff — employees
  10. snap — to click
  11. spell — a short time
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. field — a subject
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. leaves — of a tree
  17. leaves — to go away
  18. staff — employees

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