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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  3. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. hide — to keep secret
  3. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  4. chair — a leader
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. kid — to tease
  7. race — a contest
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. bat — the animal
  11. race — humankind
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. chair — a professorship
  14. kid — child
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. hide — to keep secret
  17. race — the arms race
  18. lash — to lash out

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