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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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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 · saw · squash · stick · lash · branch · race · stand

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. He works in a ________________ mill.
  4. She's very handy with a ________________.
  5. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  6. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  7. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  8. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  14. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. I can't ________________ this cold.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. squash — to crush
  3. saw — the tool
  4. saw — the tool
  5. race — humankind
  6. saw — past of 'see'
  7. lash — to lash out
  8. stand — on your feet
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. stick — to attach or keep to
  11. net — in sport
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. squash — the vegetable
  14. race — the arms race
  15. race — a contest
  16. net — for catching
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. branch — a division
  21. squash — the sport
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. stand — to bear
  24. branch — of a bank

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