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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: squash · roll · net · chest · coach · spring · game · lash

  1. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  5. That was a fun ________________.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. We're on a ________________ here.
  12. Have you met the new head ________________?
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  16. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  21. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  22. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. chest — of your body
  2. spring — of water
  3. game — wild animals
  4. squash — to crush
  5. game — a match
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. chest — a box
  8. roll — a cake
  9. squash — the vegetable
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. roll — on a roll
  12. coach — a trainer
  13. net — in sport
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. net — for catching
  16. coach — a trainer
  17. squash — the sport
  18. net — after costs
  19. spring — a coil
  20. chest — of your body
  21. roll — a list
  22. spring — the season
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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