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

Word bank: degree · lash · nail · field · bat · bear · mine · ruler

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  17. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  24. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. ruler — for measuring
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. degree — an amount
  5. bear — the animal
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. degree — temperature
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. ruler — a monarch
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. degree — from a university
  15. field — a subject
  16. nail — on a finger
  17. mine — belonging to me
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. bat — the animal
  22. mine — for digging
  23. field — for sport
  24. bear — the animal

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