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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: game · pound · scale · lash · file · cell · key · field

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  12. This piece is in a major ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  21. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. scale — size or range
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. file — a tool
  6. scale — in music
  7. cell — a phone
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. field — farmland
  10. file — a document
  11. pound — to hit hard
  12. key — in music
  13. cell — in biology
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. field — for sport
  16. file — a line of people
  17. game — a match
  18. key — for a lock
  19. game — wild animals
  20. pound — a weight
  21. scale — for weighing
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. key — the most important part
  24. field — a subject

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