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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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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 · lie · race · degree · saw · lash · kid · trunk

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  3. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  4. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Have you met the new head ________________?
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. He works in a ________________ mill.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. race — the arms race
  3. lie — an untruth
  4. kid — to tease
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. degree — temperature
  7. race — a contest
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. lie — an untruth
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. degree — an amount
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. lie — to recline
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. coach — a trainer
  20. race — humankind
  21. degree — from a university
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. saw — the tool
  24. saw — the tool

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