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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: saw · spring · stock · file · field · lash · coach · kid

  1. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  9. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  15. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  16. She's very handy with a ________________.
  17. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. The ________________ market has crashed.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. field — a subject
  8. spring — a coil
  9. stock — a soup base
  10. kid — child
  11. file — a document
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. field — for sport
  14. file — a tool
  15. spring — the season
  16. saw — the tool
  17. stock — goods
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. spring — of water
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. kid — to tease
  22. field — farmland
  23. saw — the tool
  24. stock — shares

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