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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  3. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  4. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  5. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  6. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The ball is in your ________________.
  10. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  23. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  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. field — for sport
  2. row — to paddle
  3. foot — the bottom
  4. hand — help
  5. foot — part of the body
  6. chip — in a computer
  7. chip — to eat
  8. march — the month
  9. court — for sport
  10. court — of law
  11. march — music
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. chip — for betting
  14. hand — in cards
  15. field — farmland
  16. field — a subject
  17. court — of a king
  18. foot — a measure
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. row — a line
  22. march — the month
  23. row — a quarrel
  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