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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 assure you, everything's ________________.
  2. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  10. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  15. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  16. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  17. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  23. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — all right
  2. can — a tin
  3. can — a tin
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. field — for sport
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. field — farmland
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. straw — a straw man
  10. fan — to cool the air
  11. field — a subject
  12. can — to be able to
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. fine — high quality
  15. current — of water
  16. straw — to clutch at straws
  17. current — happening now
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. cabinet — ministers
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. current — electric
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. lash — to lash out

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