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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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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: rest · wake · net · fall · lash · pitcher · stick · board

  1. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  7. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  10. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  18. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.

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

Answer key

  1. rest — a break
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. net — after costs
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. fall — to drop
  7. fall — the season
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. board — to get on
  10. stick — a piece of wood
  11. rest — what's left
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. fall — to drop
  14. wake — a trail
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. net — in sport
  17. board — a committee
  18. stick — a piece of wood
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. stick — to attach or keep to
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. net — for catching
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. rest — what's left

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