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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. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  5. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. What do you think of the new ________________?
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. We're on a ________________ here.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Where did you ________________ them?
  22. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  23. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  24. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. cabinet — a cupboard
  3. field — a subject
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. roll — a cake
  6. field — for sport
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. mug — a cup
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. club — a group
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. club — for golf
  15. cabinet — ministers
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. coach — a trainer
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. roll — on a roll
  20. field — farmland
  21. mug — to rob
  22. club — for dancing
  23. mug — a face
  24. cabinet — ministers

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