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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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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: racket · wound · kid · mine · kick · cap · lash · plane

  1. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  6. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  10. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  15. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — with a leg
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. cap — a hat
  5. kick — a thrill
  6. cap — a lid
  7. kid — to tease
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. racket — a loud noise
  10. lash — a whip stroke
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. plane — a tool
  13. mine — for digging
  14. plane — in geometry
  15. wound — past of 'wind'
  16. wound — an injury
  17. cap — of ice
  18. kid — child
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. kick — in football
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. wound — an injury
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. lash — to lash out

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