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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. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  12. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. Can you turn the ________________ on?

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

Answer key

  1. wake — to stop sleeping
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. cell — a phone
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. can — a tin
  6. field — farmland
  7. cell — in biology
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. field — for sport
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. spring — a coil
  13. spring — the season
  14. can — a tin
  15. field — a subject
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. date — the fruit
  18. wake — before a funeral
  19. wake — a trail
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. spring — of water
  22. can — to be able to
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. fan — to cool the air

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