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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: wound · field · bound · cue · fork · lash · board · kick

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  9. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  20. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  21. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  22. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. bound — certain
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. board — a flat piece
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. fork — a garden tool
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. bound — obliged
  9. wound — an injury
  10. field — for sport
  11. cue — a signal
  12. cue — a hint
  13. cue — for pool
  14. field — farmland
  15. board — a committee
  16. bound — tied together
  17. fork — to eat with
  18. wound — an injury
  19. field — a subject
  20. board — to get on
  21. fork — in a road
  22. kick — a thrill
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. kick — in football

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