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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  7. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  8. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  14. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. He works in a ________________ mill.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  23. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  24. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. field — farmland
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. race — a contest
  6. deal — an agreement
  7. deal — a big deal
  8. pass — to spend time
  9. ball — a dance
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. saw — past of 'see'
  12. row — a line
  13. pass — a permit
  14. race — humankind
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. ball — a great time
  17. row — to paddle
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. saw — the tool
  21. deal — to handle
  22. field — a subject
  23. race — the arms race
  24. field — for sport

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