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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: firm · spring · lash · stand · kick · court · bat · race

  1. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  7. I can't ________________ this cold.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  13. The ball is in your ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  17. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  18. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  24. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. firm — decided
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. court — of law
  5. race — the arms race
  6. spring — a coil
  7. stand — to bear
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. stand — for spectators
  10. spring — of water
  11. bat — the animal
  12. race — humankind
  13. court — for sport
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. race — a contest
  16. kick — with a leg
  17. kick — a thrill
  18. kick — in football
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. firm — a company
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. firm — steady
  24. court — of a king

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