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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: straw · arm · racket · degree · pitch · wake · lash · trunk

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  13. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  14. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  15. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  19. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  20. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  24. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. pitch — a sports field
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. pitch — a sales talk
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. wake — a trail
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. arm — a part of something
  13. degree — temperature
  14. pitch — completely
  15. racket — for tennis
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. racket — for tennis
  19. degree — from a university
  20. wake — before a funeral
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. wake — to stop sleeping
  24. degree — an amount

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