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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. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The ________________ market has crashed.
  15. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  16. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  19. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. snap — to click
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. stem — of a plant
  7. club — for dancing
  8. present — a gift
  9. stem — a stem cell
  10. field — a subject
  11. present — there
  12. club — for golf
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. stock — shares
  15. stock — a soup base
  16. snap — to snap out of it
  17. field — for sport
  18. stem — to come from
  19. present — the time now
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. club — a group
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. stock — goods
  24. lash — to lash out

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