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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: lash · spring · bat · bank · mine · fall · capital · field

  1. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  2. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  3. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  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. bat — for baseball
  2. fall — to drop
  3. bank — for money
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. field — for sport
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. spring — of water
  9. bank — for money
  10. bank — of a river
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. capital — money
  13. spring — a coil
  14. bat — the animal
  15. fall — the season
  16. fall — to drop
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. spring — the season
  19. mine — for digging
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. capital — a city
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. field — farmland
  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