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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: suit · racket · stick · lash · field · toast · row · chest

  1. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  4. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  5. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  6. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  7. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. When will it ________________ you to start?
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  22. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  23. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  24. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. row — a line
  4. toast — bread
  5. racket — for tennis
  6. suit — in cards
  7. chest — of your body
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. field — a subject
  10. field — farmland
  11. toast — a drink to someone
  12. field — for sport
  13. chest — of your body
  14. stick — to attach or keep to
  15. chest — a box
  16. suit — to fit
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. toast — the most admired
  22. row — to paddle
  23. suit — clothes
  24. racket — a loud noise

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