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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: spring · staff · craft · lash · can · field · cell · kid

  1. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  4. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  7. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  11. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  21. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  22. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. staff — a stick
  4. spring — the season
  5. field — a subject
  6. craft — boats
  7. spring — of water
  8. spring — a coil
  9. field — for sport
  10. kid — to tease
  11. can — to be able to
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. can — a tin
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. craft — a skill
  17. cell — in biology
  18. staff — employees
  19. staff — employees
  20. cell — a phone
  21. can — a tin
  22. craft — a handicraft
  23. kid — child
  24. field — farmland

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