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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: spell · wound · field · capital · tube · stock · staff · lash

  1. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  3. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  9. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The ________________ market has crashed.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  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. tube — a container
  2. stock — a soup base
  3. staff — employees
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. spell — a short time
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. spell — magic
  8. capital — money
  9. field — for sport
  10. wound — an injury
  11. staff — employees
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. tube — the underground
  14. wound — an injury
  15. field — farmland
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. capital — a city
  18. staff — a stick
  19. tube — in a tire
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. spell — letters
  22. stock — shares
  23. stock — goods
  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