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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: snap · bound · lash · bulb · rash · net · ball · chest

  1. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  9. The King held a masked ________________.
  10. That was ________________ to happen.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  13. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  14. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  18. Don't do anything ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  22. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  23. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  24. The kitten curled into a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. rash — a series
  3. bound — tied together
  4. chest — of your body
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. snap — to click
  7. net — in sport
  8. lash — a whip stroke
  9. ball — a dance
  10. bound — certain
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. rash — on the skin
  13. snap — to snap out of it
  14. net — for catching
  15. chest — a box
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. bound — obliged
  18. rash — hasty
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — for light
  21. chest — of your body
  22. snap — to speak sharply
  23. ball — a great time
  24. ball — a round shape

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