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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: pop · racket · mine · plane · march · lash · fine · field

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  7. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  8. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  9. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. You don't need to ________________ round.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. The ________________ took off on time.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  23. We're almost out of ________________.
  24. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. mine — for digging
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. pop — music
  6. fine — high quality
  7. march — music
  8. fine — a penalty
  9. plane — in geometry
  10. plane — a tool
  11. pop — to visit
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. march — the month
  16. march — the month
  17. fine — all right
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — farmland
  20. plane — an aircraft
  21. field — for sport
  22. racket — a loud noise
  23. pop — soda
  24. racket — for tennis

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