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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: bank · pitch · bat · bound · lash · race · land · lean

  1. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  8. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  9. That was ________________ to happen.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  12. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  13. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  14. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  15. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  18. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  21. When are we going to ________________?
  22. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  23. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  24. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.

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

Answer key

  1. land — ground
  2. lean — thin
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. lean — to rest against
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. race — a contest
  8. land — a country
  9. bound — certain
  10. race — the arms race
  11. bat — in an idiom
  12. bat — the animal
  13. pitch — a sports field
  14. pitch — a sales talk
  15. bound — tied together
  16. bank — for money
  17. race — humankind
  18. bank — for money
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. bank — of a river
  21. land — to come down
  22. bound — obliged
  23. lean — to bend
  24. pitch — completely

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