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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: lash · club · band · key · squash · mine · mate · bat

  1. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. This piece is in a major ________________.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  8. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. key — in music
  3. mate — a partner
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. key — for a lock
  6. band — a ring
  7. key — the most important part
  8. mine — an explosive
  9. mate — a friend
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. squash — to crush
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. bat — for baseball
  14. mine — for digging
  15. mine — belonging to me
  16. club — for golf
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. band — a music group
  19. squash — the sport
  20. club — for dancing
  21. lash — an eyelash
  22. club — a group
  23. bat — the animal
  24. mate — to breed

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