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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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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: cell · field · track · lash · lean · hide · bank · row

  1. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  6. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bank — for money
  2. field — farmland
  3. row — a quarrel
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. cell — a phone
  6. track — a song
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. cell — in biology
  9. track — a path
  10. field — for sport
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. row — a line
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. field — a subject
  17. track — to keep track
  18. lean — to bend
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. lean — thin
  21. bank — for money
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. row — to paddle
  24. bank — of a river

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