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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 120 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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. He is an ace ________________.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  23. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. chair — to sit on
  3. ball — a dance
  4. row — a quarrel
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. row — a line
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. ruler — for measuring
  10. file — a document
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. ruler — for measuring
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. file — a tool
  15. pitcher — in baseball
  16. row — to paddle
  17. ball — a great time
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. chair — a leader
  20. field — for sport
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. file — a line of people
  23. ruler — a monarch
  24. field — a subject

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