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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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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: cold · lie · lash · ball · kid · coach

  1. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  4. Have you met the new head ________________?
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  12. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The King held a masked ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — an illness
  2. cold — not warm
  3. lie — to recline
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. kid — to tease
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. ball — a round shape
  12. lie — an untruth
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. kid — child
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. ball — a great time
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. ball — a dance

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