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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 116 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: key · chair · field · bowl · lash · straw · present · staff

  1. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. This piece is in a major ________________.
  4. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  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. staff — a stick
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. key — in music
  4. staff — employees
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. present — a gift
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. present — the time now
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. key — for a lock
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. chair — a professorship
  16. field — for sport
  17. chair — a leader
  18. key — the most important part
  19. field — farmland
  20. staff — employees
  21. present — there
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. chair — to sit on
  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