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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  17. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. row — a line
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. bat — in an idiom
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — a subject
  8. row — to paddle
  9. field — farmland
  10. club — for golf
  11. kick — in football
  12. mug — a face
  13. club — a group
  14. mug — to rob
  15. club — for dancing
  16. mug — a cup
  17. game — wild animals
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. bat — the animal
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. kick — with a leg

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