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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  22. Have you met the new head ________________?
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. pop — to visit
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. field — a subject
  8. pop — soda
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. spell — letters
  12. pop — music
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. lash — an eyelash
  15. spell — a short time
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. kick — in football
  18. field — farmland
  19. field — for sport
  20. spell — magic
  21. fan — a supporter
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. fan — to cool the air

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