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

Word bank: degree · race · kick · straw · dip · lie

  1. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  2. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  15. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  16. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to dunk
  2. kick — in football
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. lie — to recline
  6. race — a contest
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. degree — from a university
  9. dip — a sauce
  10. race — humankind
  11. degree — an amount
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. lie — an untruth
  15. degree — temperature
  16. dip — to sink
  17. race — the arms race
  18. kick — with a leg

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