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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: net · pit · bank · hand · kid · rash · bowl · straw

  1. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  9. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  10. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  11. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  12. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  13. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  14. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. Don't do anything ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. pit — a hole
  4. bank — for money
  5. net — in sport
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. net — for catching
  9. bank — for money
  10. straw — dry grass
  11. bowl — a football final
  12. net — after costs
  13. hand — in cards
  14. bank — of a river
  15. kid — to tease
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. rash — hasty
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. hand — part of the body
  20. kid — child
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. rash — a series
  24. pit — in a race

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