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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: degree · arm · stick · kid · shower · lash · spell · craft

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  7. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  8. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  9. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  10. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  11. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  17. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  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 — a whip stroke
  2. degree — temperature
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. arm — part of the body
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. stick — a piece of wood
  7. arm — a part of something
  8. stick — to attach or keep to
  9. shower — rain
  10. kid — child
  11. kid — to tease
  12. degree — from a university
  13. spell — a short time
  14. craft — a handicraft
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. spell — magic
  18. spell — letters
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. craft — a skill
  21. shower — to wash
  22. craft — boats
  23. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  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