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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 120 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. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  4. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  5. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  16. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  17. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  18. The ________________ went through the wall.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — for sport
  2. kick — in football
  3. mate — to breed
  4. kick — with a leg
  5. field — farmland
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. track — to keep track
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. club — for golf
  14. field — a subject
  15. track — a song
  16. track — a path
  17. club — a group
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. bat — the animal
  20. mate — a partner
  21. club — for dancing
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. mate — a friend
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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