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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: lash · arm · capital · court · kid · lie · swing · hand

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  5. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  9. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  10. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  13. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  16. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  17. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  18. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  21. The ball is in your ________________.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. swing — to play on
  4. lie — an untruth
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. hand — in cards
  9. court — of a king
  10. capital — a city
  11. swing — in golf
  12. lie — to recline
  13. lash — to lash out
  14. kid — child
  15. capital — money
  16. swing — music
  17. court — of law
  18. lie — an untruth
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. hand — help
  21. court — for sport
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. kid — to tease
  24. arm — a part of something

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