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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. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  18. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  22. I'll be taking the ________________.
  23. That was a fun ________________.
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. game — wild animals
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. safe — out of danger
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. bat — the animal
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. tube — a container
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. row — a line
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. bank — for money
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. field — for sport
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. bank — for money
  18. row — a quarrel
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. field — farmland
  21. bank — of a river
  22. tube — the underground
  23. game — a match
  24. row — to paddle

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