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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: charge · cabinet · straw · lash · present · field · stock · staff

  1. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  2. The tickets are free of ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The ________________ market has crashed.
  6. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  9. What do you think of the new ________________?
  10. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  11. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  12. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. field — a subject
  2. charge — a price
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. stock — shares
  6. field — for sport
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. present — there
  9. cabinet — ministers
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. stock — a soup base
  12. charge — electricity
  13. field — farmland
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. charge — in control
  16. stock — goods
  17. staff — a stick
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. staff — employees
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. present — the time now
  23. present — a gift
  24. staff — employees

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