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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: cap · lash · mine · file · degree · kick · present · spring

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  7. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. file — a document
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. cap — a hat
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. degree — an amount
  7. cap — a lid
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. spring — a coil
  11. degree — from a university
  12. file — a tool
  13. spring — the season
  14. mine — for digging
  15. present — the time now
  16. file — a line of people
  17. degree — temperature
  18. mine — belonging to me
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. cap — of ice
  21. present — a gift
  22. present — there
  23. kick — with a leg
  24. spring — of water

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