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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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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: lash · deal · bat · patient · trunk · kick · court · stick

  1. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  2. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  6. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  7. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  10. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. The ball is in your ________________.
  13. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  14. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  19. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. kick — a thrill
  2. stick — a piece of wood
  3. court — of a king
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. patient — a sick person
  6. trunk — of a car
  7. court — of law
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. stick — to attach or keep to
  10. patient — calm and waiting
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. court — for sport
  13. trunk — of a tree
  14. deal — an agreement
  15. kick — in football
  16. deal — a big deal
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. patient — a sick person
  19. kick — with a leg
  20. bat — the animal
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. deal — to handle
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. bat — for baseball

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