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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 120 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. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  14. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  22. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. key — in music
  3. can — a tin
  4. wake — to stop sleeping
  5. field — farmland
  6. file — a line of people
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. can — to be able to
  9. wake — a trail
  10. game — a match
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. rash — hasty
  13. game — a kind of play
  14. key — the most important part
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. file — a tool
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. key — for a lock
  19. game — wild animals
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. file — a document
  22. can — a tin
  23. rash — a series
  24. field — a subject

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