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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.

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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  7. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  11. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  14. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  15. How do you ________________ your surname?
  16. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. field — farmland
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. spell — magic
  6. stem — a stem cell
  7. board — a committee
  8. stem — to come from
  9. field — a subject
  10. foot — a measure
  11. foot — the bottom
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. foot — part of the body
  14. stem — of a plant
  15. spell — letters
  16. board — a flat piece
  17. board — to get on
  18. spell — a short time

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