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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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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: field · current · craft · sharp · lash · tear · race · cell

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  9. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. current — of water
  3. tear — from crying
  4. tear — from crying
  5. craft — a skill
  6. current — electric
  7. craft — boats
  8. field — for sport
  9. tear — to rip
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. cell — in biology
  12. field — a subject
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. field — farmland
  15. race — the arms race
  16. current — happening now
  17. sharp — clever
  18. race — a contest
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. sharp — with an edge
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. race — humankind
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. sharp — exactly

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