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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 stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  2. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  5. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  6. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  7. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  18. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  19. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  23. Have you settled on a ________________?
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. date — on the calendar
  3. face — to point toward
  4. cap — a lid
  5. club — a group
  6. face — to confront
  7. cap — of ice
  8. face — part of the head
  9. club — for dancing
  10. firm — decided
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. rash — hasty
  14. club — for golf
  15. rash — on the skin
  16. rash — a series
  17. date — the fruit
  18. firm — a company
  19. cap — a hat
  20. field — farmland
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. firm — steady
  23. date — on the calendar
  24. field — a subject

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