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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. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The ball is in your ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  6. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  7. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  8. Have you found your soul ________________?
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. False peace will not ________________.
  11. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  12. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  19. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He hit the ball with his ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — a stick
  2. mate — to breed
  3. court — for sport
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. mate — a friend
  6. last — finally
  7. racket — a loud noise
  8. mate — a partner
  9. field — a subject
  10. last — to go on
  11. band — a rubber band
  12. staff — employees
  13. staff — employees
  14. field — for sport
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. court — of law
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. last — final
  19. court — of a king
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. band — a music group
  22. field — farmland
  23. band — a ring
  24. racket — for tennis

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