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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: coach · cold · lash · prune · rush · kid · rock · wave

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  5. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. That must've been a ________________.
  10. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  15. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  21. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. rush — hurry
  5. prune — to trim
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. kid — to tease
  9. rush — a thrill
  10. rock — music
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. wave — with your hand
  13. prune — to trim
  14. prune — the fruit
  15. coach — pulled by horses
  16. cold — not warm
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. kid — child
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. rock — a stone
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. wave — of the sea
  24. cold — an illness

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