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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: stick · arm · spring · wound · lash · rush · field · straw

  1. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. field — farmland
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. field — a subject
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. spring — a coil
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. stick — to attach or keep to
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. field — for sport
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. spring — the season
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. rush — hurry
  21. wound — an injury
  22. wound — an injury
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. spring — of water

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