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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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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: pit · lash · cabinet · court · degree · cold · mug · bulb

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. What do you think of the new ________________?
  3. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  4. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Where did you ________________ them?
  12. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The ball is in your ________________.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  19. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  24. He refilled his coffee ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. cabinet — ministers
  3. cabinet — a cupboard
  4. degree — an amount
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. court — of law
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. mug — a face
  9. cold — an illness
  10. degree — temperature
  11. mug — to rob
  12. degree — from a university
  13. pit — a hole
  14. court — of a king
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. court — for sport
  17. cold — not warm
  18. pit — a fruit stone
  19. pit — in a race
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. cabinet — ministers
  24. mug — a cup

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