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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: coach · fall · pop · lash · mate · degree · mine · temple

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. You don't need to ________________ round.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  11. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  12. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  15. When was this ________________ built?
  16. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  17. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  18. Have you found your soul ________________?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  21. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  24. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. pop — to visit
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. mine — for digging
  6. coach — pulled by horses
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. mate — a friend
  11. fall — to drop
  12. mine — an explosive
  13. fall — to drop
  14. degree — an amount
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. temple — side of the head
  17. mate — to breed
  18. mate — a partner
  19. pop — soda
  20. degree — temperature
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. pop — music
  23. degree — from a university
  24. fall — the season

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