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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: patient · hide · kick · swing · rash · lash · degree · spell

  1. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  5. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  6. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  7. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. How do you ________________ your surname?
  13. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  18. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  21. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  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. swing — music
  2. spell — magic
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. patient — calm and waiting
  6. swing — in golf
  7. rash — on the skin
  8. kick — in football
  9. hide — to keep secret
  10. rash — hasty
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. spell — letters
  13. patient — a sick person
  14. rash — a series
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. swing — to play on
  17. patient — a sick person
  18. degree — from a university
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. spell — a short time
  21. lash — to lash out
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. degree — temperature
  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