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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 116 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: scale · coach · field · bound · club · squash · lash · pass

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  3. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  7. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  13. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. That was ________________ to happen.
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. squash — the vegetable
  3. scale — for weighing
  4. squash — to crush
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. pass — to spend time
  7. bound — obliged
  8. club — a group
  9. scale — in music
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. pass — a permit
  13. squash — the sport
  14. club — for golf
  15. scale — size or range
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. bound — certain
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. pass — to succeed
  20. field — for sport
  21. club — for dancing
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. field — a subject
  24. bound — tied together

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