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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 120 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: fall · kid · nail · season · coach · lash · last · swing

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. False peace will not ________________.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  6. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Did you ________________ the meat?
  12. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. last — to go on
  4. last — finally
  5. season — in sport
  6. nail — for a hammer
  7. swing — to play on
  8. season — of the year
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. kid — child
  11. season — to add flavour
  12. fall — to drop
  13. kid — to tease
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. fall — the season
  16. last — final
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. swing — music
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. swing — in golf
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. coach — a trainer
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. fall — to drop

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