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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 116 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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  3. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  3. land — a country
  4. field — farmland
  5. fall — the season
  6. craft — boats
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. perch — the fish
  9. land — to come down
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. field — for sport
  13. fall — to drop
  14. kid — child
  15. scale — size or range
  16. kid — to tease
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. craft — a skill
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. scale — in music
  22. land — ground
  23. field — a subject
  24. craft — a handicraft

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