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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. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  12. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  13. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. firm — steady
  2. firm — decided
  3. drill — the tool
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. field — farmland
  6. field — a subject
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. content — happy
  10. field — for sport
  11. kick — a thrill
  12. kick — in football
  13. wake — before a funeral
  14. drill — a practice
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. wake — a trail
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. drill — army training
  20. content — the amount
  21. degree — temperature
  22. firm — a company
  23. degree — from a university
  24. degree — an amount

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