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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: kid · stem · coach · date · kick · race

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. Have you met the new head ________________?
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  14. Have you settled on a ________________?
  15. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. stem — to come from
  3. kick — a thrill
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. race — the arms race
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. stem — of a plant
  9. kick — in football
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. kid — child
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. date — the fruit
  16. kid — to tease
  17. race — humankind
  18. race — a contest

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