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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  5. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. When are we going to ________________?
  12. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  16. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  17. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. He was locked up in a ________________.
  24. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. board — to get on
  5. board — a committee
  6. field — for sport
  7. field — farmland
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. cell — a phone
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. land — to come down
  12. land — a country
  13. wind — moving air
  14. land — ground
  15. trunk — of a car
  16. trunk — of a tree
  17. root — of a word
  18. cell — in biology
  19. root — the cause
  20. wind — moving air
  21. field — a subject
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. cell — in a prison
  24. root — of a plant

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