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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: field · game · stick · fork · rash · ground · current · lash

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  3. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  11. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  12. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  13. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  14. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. That was a fun ________________.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. There's no middle ________________.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  24. Add some ________________ pepper to it.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. current — electric
  3. fork — to eat with
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. current — happening now
  6. rash — hasty
  7. rash — a series
  8. field — for sport
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. field — a subject
  11. fork — a garden tool
  12. current — of water
  13. ground — the earth
  14. game — wild animals
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. game — a match
  17. fork — in a road
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. ground — a position
  22. field — farmland
  23. stick — a piece of wood
  24. ground — crushed

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