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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 120 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. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  10. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  22. When are we going to ________________?
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. field — for sport
  3. clip — a video
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. field — farmland
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. staff — employees
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. land — ground
  10. rash — a series
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. land — a country
  13. staff — employees
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. rash — hasty
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. staff — a stick
  19. clip — for paper
  20. field — a subject
  21. bear — the animal
  22. land — to come down
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. clip — to cut

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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