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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 carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. plane — a tool
  2. tube — a container
  3. field — farmland
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. board — a committee
  6. file — a line of people
  7. rash — hasty
  8. field — a subject
  9. field — for sport
  10. chest — a box
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. chest — of your body
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. board — a flat piece
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. file — a document
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. board — to get on
  21. chest — of your body
  22. file — a tool
  23. rash — a series
  24. tube — the underground

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