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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. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  10. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  11. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  22. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. face — part of the head
  3. file — a document
  4. patient — calm and waiting
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. patient — a sick person
  7. file — a line of people
  8. field — a subject
  9. ground — crushed
  10. dip — a sauce
  11. dip — to sink
  12. drill — a practice
  13. ground — a position
  14. ground — the earth
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. field — farmland
  17. lash — a whip stroke
  18. file — a tool
  19. face — to point toward
  20. drill — the tool
  21. face — to confront
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. field — for sport
  24. drill — army training

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