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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. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  2. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. When was this ________________ built?
  6. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The ________________ market has crashed.
  9. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  19. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. temple — side of the head
  2. staff — employees
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. field — a subject
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. pound — a weight
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. stock — shares
  9. staff — a stick
  10. race — humankind
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. pound — to hit hard
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. temple — a place of worship
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. staff — employees
  18. field — farmland
  19. field — for sport
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. race — the arms race
  22. race — a contest
  23. stock — goods
  24. straw — a straw man

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