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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: wake · root · field · swing · net · lash · row · sharp

  1. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  2. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  5. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  10. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. David sat on the ________________.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  19. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. sharp — with an edge
  2. row — a quarrel
  3. root — of a word
  4. net — for catching
  5. field — a subject
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. net — after costs
  8. field — for sport
  9. wake — before a funeral
  10. row — to paddle
  11. wake — a trail
  12. row — a line
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. swing — to play on
  15. field — farmland
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. swing — in golf
  19. root — of a plant
  20. net — in sport
  21. wake — to stop sleeping
  22. sharp — clever
  23. swing — music
  24. root — the cause

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