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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. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  2. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  9. I'll be taking the ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  13. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  17. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  18. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — before a funeral
  2. field — a subject
  3. field — for sport
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. tube — a container
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. tube — in a tire
  9. tube — the underground
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. club — for dancing
  12. face — part of the head
  13. face — to point toward
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. club — for golf
  16. field — farmland
  17. arm — a part of something
  18. wake — a trail
  19. club — a group
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. band — a ring
  23. face — to confront
  24. band — a music group

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