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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: bat · stick · racket · trunk · mouse · lash · race · degree

  1. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  2. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  6. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  10. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  13. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  16. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  17. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  24. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.

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

Answer key

  1. degree — temperature
  2. trunk — of an elephant
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bat — the animal
  5. trunk — of a tree
  6. bat — for baseball
  7. degree — an amount
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. lash — a whip stroke
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. race — the arms race
  13. stick — a piece of wood
  14. degree — from a university
  15. mouse — for a computer
  16. race — a contest
  17. mouse — the animal
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. race — humankind
  21. racket — a loud noise
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. mouse — the animal

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