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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. There's no middle ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. ground — a position
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. bank — for money
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. mine — for digging
  7. field — for sport
  8. bulb — for light
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. bank — of a river
  11. bank — for money
  12. drill — the tool
  13. net — in sport
  14. drill — a practice
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. ground — the earth
  17. ground — crushed
  18. bulb — for light
  19. net — for catching
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. drill — army training
  23. net — after costs
  24. field — farmland

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