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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. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  4. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  7. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  10. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  19. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  20. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. face — to confront
  3. craft — a handicraft
  4. game — a kind of play
  5. craft — a skill
  6. game — wild animals
  7. bound — tied together
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. current — electric
  10. craft — boats
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. face — to point toward
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. bound — certain
  17. field — for sport
  18. face — part of the head
  19. current — of water
  20. current — happening now
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. field — farmland
  23. game — a match
  24. bound — obliged

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