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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: present · straw · bulb · bank · lash · net · cold · stand

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  4. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  5. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  17. I can't ________________ this cold.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  23. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. cold — an illness
  3. stand — on your feet
  4. bank — for money
  5. net — after costs
  6. bulb — for light
  7. straw — to clutch at straws
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. cold — not warm
  12. present — there
  13. net — in sport
  14. present — a gift
  15. present — the time now
  16. straw — a straw man
  17. stand — to bear
  18. bulb — for light
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. bank — for money
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. bank — of a river
  23. net — for catching
  24. cold — the Cold War

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