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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. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  9. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  10. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  13. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  14. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  15. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  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. hide — to keep secret
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. field — for sport
  4. saw — the tool
  5. kid — child
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. march — the month
  9. stem — to come from
  10. march — the month
  11. saw — the tool
  12. saw — past of 'see'
  13. fork — to eat with
  14. march — music
  15. stem — a stem cell
  16. field — farmland
  17. fork — in a road
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. kid — to tease
  20. stem — of a plant
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  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