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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.

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: straw · lash · net · land · scale · bass · row · chest

  1. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  2. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  19. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  24. I play ________________ in a jazz band.

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

Answer key

  1. net — for catching
  2. land — ground
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. row — to paddle
  5. bass — low music
  6. row — a quarrel
  7. scale — in music
  8. straw — to clutch at straws
  9. net — after costs
  10. land — to come down
  11. net — in sport
  12. chest — of your body
  13. straw — dry grass
  14. scale — size or range
  15. row — a line
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. bass — the fish
  19. chest — of your body
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. straw — a straw man
  22. land — a country
  23. chest — a box
  24. bass — the instrument

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