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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: bowl · game · net · ground · hand · straw · last · bank

  1. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  2. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  13. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  14. There's no middle ________________.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  18. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  19. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  20. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  24. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. straw — to clutch at straws
  2. bowl — to roll
  3. net — for catching
  4. ground — the earth
  5. bowl — a football final
  6. ground — crushed
  7. last — to go on
  8. last — finally
  9. bank — of a river
  10. game — a match
  11. last — final
  12. hand — in cards
  13. bowl — a dish
  14. ground — a position
  15. hand — help
  16. game — wild animals
  17. net — in sport
  18. straw — dry grass
  19. game — a kind of play
  20. bank — for money
  21. net — after costs
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. bank — for money
  24. hand — part of the body

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