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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 120 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 · bat · straw · arm · wound · bass · fall · season

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. Did you ________________ the meat?
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  10. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  11. My father caught me by the ________________.
  12. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  20. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  21. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  22. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. bat — for baseball
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. season — to add flavour
  5. fall — to drop
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. straw — a straw man
  8. wound — an injury
  9. season — in sport
  10. fall — the season
  11. arm — part of the body
  12. lash — an eyelash
  13. wound — an injury
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. bat — the animal
  17. bass — low music
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. straw — dry grass
  20. bass — the instrument
  21. bass — the fish
  22. wound — past of 'wind'
  23. fall — to drop
  24. season — of the year

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