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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: stand · pop · ground · lash · chair · field · stick · cell

  1. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  2. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. There's no middle ________________.
  5. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  6. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  7. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  14. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. You don't need to ________________ round.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. I can't ________________ this cold.
  23. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. stick — a piece of wood
  2. field — farmland
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. ground — a position
  5. stick — a piece of wood
  6. pop — music
  7. stand — for spectators
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. chair — to sit on
  10. cell — a phone
  11. field — a subject
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. stick — to attach or keep to
  14. chair — a professorship
  15. field — for sport
  16. chair — a leader
  17. ground — crushed
  18. pop — to visit
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. cell — in biology
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. stand — to bear
  23. ground — the earth
  24. pop — soda

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