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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 spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  14. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. When was this ________________ built?
  19. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  20. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  21. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. When are we going to ________________?
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. tear — from crying
  4. field — a subject
  5. tear — to rip
  6. staff — a stick
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. bass — low music
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. staff — employees
  11. swing — in golf
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. land — ground
  14. bass — the fish
  15. tear — from crying
  16. swing — to play on
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. temple — a place of worship
  19. staff — employees
  20. swing — music
  21. field — farmland
  22. land — a country
  23. land — to come down
  24. field — for sport

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