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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 newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He works in a ________________ mill.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  16. That must've been a ________________.
  17. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  18. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. You shouldn't ________________ things.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — the bottom
  2. field — farmland
  3. saw — the tool
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. rush — hurry
  6. field — for sport
  7. file — a line of people
  8. field — a subject
  9. file — a document
  10. branch — a division
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. saw — the tool
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. branch — of a bank
  16. rush — a thrill
  17. saw — past of 'see'
  18. foot — part of the body
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. file — a tool
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. foot — a measure
  23. mine — for digging
  24. rush — to hurry

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