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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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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: kick · degree · key · tear · fine · lash · clip · last

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  13. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. This piece is in a major ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  24. Hold the papers together with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. degree — an amount
  3. fine — high quality
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. kick — in football
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. tear — from crying
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. last — finally
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. last — final
  12. clip — to cut
  13. clip — a video
  14. tear — from crying
  15. fine — all right
  16. key — for a lock
  17. last — to go on
  18. key — in music
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. degree — from a university
  21. key — the most important part
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. tear — to rip
  24. clip — for paper

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