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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.

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: spell · kid · field · straw · lash · bound · spring · stem

  1. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. straw — dry grass
  2. spell — magic
  3. straw — a straw man
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. kid — child
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — the season
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. stem — of a plant
  11. field — a subject
  12. stem — to come from
  13. bound — obliged
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. field — farmland
  16. bound — tied together
  17. bound — certain
  18. spell — a short time
  19. spring — a coil
  20. kid — to tease
  21. field — for sport
  22. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. spell — letters

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