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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: bulb · firm · row · kick · lash · cold · racket · root

  1. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  5. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  6. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  7. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  8. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  9. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  14. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  15. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  18. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  24. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.

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

Answer key

  1. firm — a company
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. kick — in football
  4. cold — an illness
  5. row — to paddle
  6. kick — a thrill
  7. firm — steady
  8. racket — for tennis
  9. root — of a word
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. bulb — for light
  13. row — a quarrel
  14. kick — with a leg
  15. root — of a plant
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. racket — a loud noise
  18. root — the cause
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bulb — for light
  23. row — a line
  24. firm — decided

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