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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: dip · stick · cell · race · coach · lie

  1. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  6. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  7. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  8. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  16. He was locked up in a ________________.
  17. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. dip — a sauce
  2. dip — to sink
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. race — a contest
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. race — humankind
  8. lie — an untruth
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. lie — to recline
  11. cell — in biology
  12. stick — a piece of wood
  13. cell — a phone
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. dip — to dunk
  16. cell — in a prison
  17. race — the arms race
  18. lie — an untruth

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