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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  16. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  19. The King held a masked ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. stock — goods
  3. ball — a great time
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. cue — a hint
  6. field — farmland
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. ball — a round shape
  9. field — a subject
  10. ground — crushed
  11. mine — for digging
  12. cue — for pool
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. ground — a position
  15. ground — the earth
  16. cue — a signal
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. bark — to shout
  19. ball — a dance
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. field — for sport
  22. stock — a soup base
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. stock — shares

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