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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: saw · mine · jam · racket · rash · lash · hand · bat

  1. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  2. She's very handy with a ________________.
  3. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  4. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  5. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  6. He works in a ________________ mill.
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  18. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  19. Don't do anything ________________.
  20. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — a tight spot
  2. saw — the tool
  3. mine — an explosive
  4. racket — for tennis
  5. jam — in traffic
  6. saw — the tool
  7. rash — a series
  8. jam — to spread on bread
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. hand — in cards
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. bat — the animal
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. saw — past of 'see'
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. lash — to lash out
  18. lash — an eyelash
  19. rash — hasty
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. hand — help
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. mine — for digging

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