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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. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  5. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  8. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  23. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. wound — an injury
  3. field — a subject
  4. leaves — to go away
  5. scale — size or range
  6. scale — in music
  7. spell — a short time
  8. leaves — of a tree
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. stock — shares
  11. field — for sport
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. spell — letters
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. wound — an injury
  16. wake — a trail
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. stock — a soup base
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. spell — magic
  22. stock — goods
  23. scale — for weighing
  24. field — farmland

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