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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: bay · lash · snap · chest · kick · nail · coach · tube

  1. Have you met the new head ________________?
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. My mare is ________________ in color.
  7. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  13. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  20. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  21. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  24. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.

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

Answer key

  1. coach — a trainer
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. coach — pulled by horses
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. bay — a horse colour
  7. snap — to speak sharply
  8. snap — to click
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. kick — a thrill
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. chest — of your body
  13. bay — to keep at bay
  14. tube — the underground
  15. bay — a part of the sea
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. tube — a container
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. nail — on a finger
  20. lash — an eyelash
  21. kick — with a leg
  22. kick — in football
  23. nail — for a hammer
  24. coach — a trainer

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