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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: chest · pit · fan · lash · suit · cap · field · scale

  1. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  2. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  5. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  14. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  15. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. When will it ________________ you to start?
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — clothes
  2. pit — a fruit stone
  3. field — farmland
  4. cap — of ice
  5. chest — of your body
  6. field — for sport
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. scale — in music
  9. chest — of your body
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. field — a subject
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. pit — in a race
  14. pit — a hole
  15. suit — in cards
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. cap — a lid
  18. suit — to fit
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. scale — size or range
  22. fan — a supporter
  23. chest — a box
  24. cap — a hat

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