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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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  7. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  13. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  14. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  15. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The ball is in your ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. kick — in football
  3. pit — in a race
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. row — to paddle
  6. bound — obliged
  7. row — a quarrel
  8. row — a line
  9. scale — in music
  10. degree — an amount
  11. scale — size or range
  12. kick — with a leg
  13. degree — from a university
  14. pit — a fruit stone
  15. pit — a hole
  16. bound — tied together
  17. scale — for weighing
  18. bound — certain
  19. court — for sport
  20. degree — temperature
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. court — of a king
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. court — of law

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