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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 116 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: lash · coach · bulb · wound · row · content · bowl · rush

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  3. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  4. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  8. That must've been a ________________.
  9. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  12. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Have you met the new head ________________?
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. rush — hurry
  3. lash — to lash out
  4. bowl — a football final
  5. content — the amount
  6. wound — an injury
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. rush — a thrill
  9. row — a quarrel
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. row — a line
  12. row — to paddle
  13. bulb — for light
  14. coach — a trainer
  15. wound — an injury
  16. content — happy
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. rush — to hurry
  24. content — videos and posts

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