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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. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  10. The King held a masked ________________.
  11. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  12. The tickets are free of ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  18. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  19. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.

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

Answer key

  1. charge — electricity
  2. file — a document
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. field — for sport
  5. ball — a round shape
  6. club — a group
  7. field — a subject
  8. file — a tool
  9. ball — a great time
  10. ball — a dance
  11. charge — in control
  12. charge — a price
  13. file — a line of people
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. field — farmland
  17. straw — a straw man
  18. club — for golf
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. lie — an untruth
  22. club — for dancing
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. lie — to recline

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