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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: board · lash · bat · press · content · hand · dip · mug

  1. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  2. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  3. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  4. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. Where did you ________________ them?
  16. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  17. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  18. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  22. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  23. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  24. Did you ________________ the button?

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

Answer key

  1. content — videos and posts
  2. hand — part of the body
  3. mug — a face
  4. press — a publisher
  5. hand — help
  6. dip — to sink
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. board — a flat piece
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. board — a committee
  11. dip — a sauce
  12. mug — a cup
  13. hand — in cards
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. mug — to rob
  16. dip — to dunk
  17. bat — the animal
  18. press — newspapers
  19. content — happy
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. content — the amount
  22. bat — for baseball
  23. board — to get on
  24. press — to push

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