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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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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. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. The ________________ went through the wall.
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. degree — temperature
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. fan — a supporter
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. degree — an amount
  16. kick — in football
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. degree — from a university
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. nail — for a hammer
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. nail — on a finger

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