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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 · lash · band · bat · wave · dip · cell · content

  1. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  21. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — in sport
  2. bat — the animal
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. dip — to sink
  6. dip — a sauce
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. content — happy
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. net — for catching
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. cell — in biology
  14. content — the amount
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. band — a ring
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. dip — to dunk
  21. net — after costs
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. cell — a phone
  24. band — a music group

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