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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  5. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  6. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  13. That was a fun ________________.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  17. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. fall — the season
  3. field — a subject
  4. cabinet — a cupboard
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fork — to eat with
  7. bass — the fish
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. wind — moving air
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. fork — in a road
  13. game — a match
  14. wind — moving air
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. cabinet — ministers
  17. bass — the instrument
  18. game — wild animals
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. fall — to drop
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. field — farmland
  23. bass — low music
  24. field — for sport

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