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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: kid · field · fan · pass · lash · arm · band · wave

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  3. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  4. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  5. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  6. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  14. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  15. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. wave — a sudden rise
  4. field — a subject
  5. wave — with your hand
  6. fan — to cool the air
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. band — a music group
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. arm — a part of something
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. pass — to spend time
  14. field — for sport
  15. fan — a supporter
  16. band — a ring
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. kid — to tease
  21. pass — to succeed
  22. kid — child
  23. pass — a permit
  24. field — farmland

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