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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. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  3. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  4. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. rash — on the skin
  3. race — humankind
  4. rash — a series
  5. field — for sport
  6. spell — magic
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. can — a tin
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. cell — a phone
  12. field — farmland
  13. race — the arms race
  14. race — a contest
  15. date — the fruit
  16. field — a subject
  17. can — to be able to
  18. spell — letters
  19. date — on the calendar
  20. rash — hasty
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. can — a tin
  24. spell — a short time

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