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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.

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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: mug · current · game · net · plane · lash · tear · field

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. Where did you ________________ them?
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  6. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  16. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  21. The ________________ took off on time.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. Let us try to swim against the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. mug — to rob
  3. net — for catching
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. plane — a tool
  6. plane — in geometry
  7. tear — to rip
  8. lash — to lash out
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. tear — from crying
  11. mug — a face
  12. game — a match
  13. mug — a cup
  14. tear — from crying
  15. current — happening now
  16. field — for sport
  17. current — electric
  18. game — wild animals
  19. field — farmland
  20. game — a kind of play
  21. plane — an aircraft
  22. net — after costs
  23. field — a subject
  24. current — 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