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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. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  2. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. Have you found your soul ________________?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. There's no middle ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — to breed
  2. racket — a loud noise
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. drill — army training
  5. cell — in biology
  6. field — farmland
  7. drill — a practice
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. field — for sport
  11. rock — music
  12. racket — for tennis
  13. ground — the earth
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. mate — a partner
  16. ground — crushed
  17. cell — a phone
  18. mate — a friend
  19. rock — a stone
  20. drill — the tool
  21. field — a subject
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. ground — a position
  24. lash — to lash out

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