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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: stick · race · degree · lash · coach · charge · spell · ground

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  3. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  4. How do you ________________ your surname?
  5. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  9. The tickets are free of ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  22. There's no middle ________________.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. ground — the earth
  3. race — a contest
  4. spell — letters
  5. charge — electricity
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. spell — magic
  8. race — the arms race
  9. charge — a price
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. degree — from a university
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. degree — temperature
  17. ground — crushed
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. charge — in control
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. race — humankind
  22. ground — a position
  23. spell — a short time
  24. degree — an amount

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