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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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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: field · wake · lash · mine · wind · club · pound · mouse

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  18. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  23. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  24. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. field — farmland
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. club — for golf
  6. field — a subject
  7. club — for dancing
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. field — for sport
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. pound — to hit hard
  14. wake — a trail
  15. wake — to stop sleeping
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. mine — for digging
  18. club — a group
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. mouse — for a computer
  21. wind — moving air
  22. wind — moving air
  23. mouse — the animal
  24. pound — a weight

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