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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 116 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: snap · lash · board · band · tube · bat · squash · fall

  1. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  2. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  12. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  19. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  20. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  21. I'll be taking the ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. board — to get on
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. board — a committee
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. tube — a container
  9. band — a music group
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. squash — the vegetable
  12. snap — to speak sharply
  13. band — a ring
  14. bat — for baseball
  15. bat — the animal
  16. snap — to click
  17. squash — the sport
  18. fall — to drop
  19. board — a flat piece
  20. snap — to snap out of it
  21. tube — the underground
  22. fall — the season
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. squash — to crush

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