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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.

Make a worksheet

Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bat · court · roll · net · lash · rash · foot · toast

  1. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  9. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  12. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  13. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. We're on a ________________ here.
  17. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. Don't do anything ________________.
  23. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  24. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.

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

Answer key

  1. toast — the most admired
  2. court — for sport
  3. net — for catching
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. net — in sport
  6. rash — a series
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. foot — the bottom
  9. bat — the animal
  10. net — after costs
  11. foot — a measure
  12. court — of law
  13. roll — a list
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. roll — on a roll
  17. roll — a cake
  18. toast — bread
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. court — of a king
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. rash — hasty
  23. bat — in an idiom
  24. toast — a drink to someone

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