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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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Word bank
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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: lash · club · charge · rock · lean · field · cell · patient

  1. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  16. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  17. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  18. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. patient — a sick person
  4. club — for dancing
  5. charge — a price
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. charge — in control
  8. field — farmland
  9. lean — to bend
  10. cell — in biology
  11. charge — electricity
  12. club — a group
  13. cell — a phone
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. lean — thin
  16. rock — to move gently
  17. rock — a stone
  18. patient — calm and waiting
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. club — for golf
  23. field — for sport
  24. field — a subject

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