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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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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: firm · field · stick · spell · bat · wound · pop · lie

  1. We're almost out of ________________.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. You don't need to ________________ round.
  8. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  15. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  18. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  19. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — soda
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. wound — an injury
  4. spell — letters
  5. spell — magic
  6. firm — decided
  7. pop — to visit
  8. field — a subject
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. firm — a company
  12. bat — the animal
  13. spell — a short time
  14. pop — music
  15. stick — a piece of wood
  16. field — for sport
  17. lie — an untruth
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. firm — steady
  20. field — farmland
  21. lie — to recline
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. wound — an injury
  24. stick — a piece of wood

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