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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: straw · bound · band · racket · lash · last · net · cold

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  10. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  11. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. The water is too ________________.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. False peace will not ________________.
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. racket — for tennis
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. bound — obliged
  10. last — final
  11. bound — tied together
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. last — finally
  14. band — a music group
  15. net — after costs
  16. cold — not warm
  17. band — a ring
  18. bound — certain
  19. cold — an illness
  20. net — for catching
  21. last — to go on
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. lash — a whip stroke
  24. band — a rubber band

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