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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 116 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. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  7. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  14. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  18. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  24. The spa offers ________________ extensions.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — to move gently
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. game — wild animals
  4. tear — to rip
  5. field — farmland
  6. board — a flat piece
  7. rock — music
  8. tear — from crying
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. field — a subject
  11. game — a kind of play
  12. field — for sport
  13. wound — past of 'wind'
  14. board — to get on
  15. game — a match
  16. tear — from crying
  17. wound — an injury
  18. board — a committee
  19. staff — a stick
  20. wound — an injury
  21. staff — employees
  22. rock — a stone
  23. staff — employees
  24. lash — an eyelash

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