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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: plane · last · spring · lash · straw · field · bay · scale

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  12. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. My mare is ________________ in color.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. False peace will not ________________.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. field — farmland
  3. spring — a coil
  4. field — for sport
  5. plane — a tool
  6. bay — a part of the sea
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. field — a subject
  9. spring — of water
  10. last — final
  11. plane — in geometry
  12. scale — size or range
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. spring — the season
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. last — finally
  18. bay — a horse colour
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. scale — in music
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. last — to go on
  24. straw — dry grass

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