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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: trunk · lash · degree · coach · press · nail · cell · object

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. The ________________ went through the wall.
  3. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  4. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. Have you met the new head ________________?
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Did you ________________ the button?
  11. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  19. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  20. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  21. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  22. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  23. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  24. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. nail — for a hammer
  3. trunk — of an elephant
  4. lash — an eyelash
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. press — a publisher
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. press — to push
  11. degree — from a university
  12. object — a thing
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. degree — temperature
  15. cell — in biology
  16. object — an aim
  17. cell — a phone
  18. coach — pulled by horses
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. object — to protest
  21. degree — an amount
  22. press — newspapers
  23. nail — on a finger
  24. nail — for a hammer

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