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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: lash · field · mine · snap · kid · staff · coach · branch

  1. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. Have you met the new head ________________?
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  21. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  22. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  23. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to speak sharply
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. snap — to click
  4. staff — employees
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. kid — child
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. snap — to snap out of it
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. field — farmland
  14. branch — a division
  15. field — for sport
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. mine — for digging
  19. kid — to tease
  20. field — a subject
  21. staff — employees
  22. staff — a stick
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. branch — of a bank

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