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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: lash · bore · bass · net · snap · chair · court · squash

  1. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  2. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  11. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  15. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  16. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  17. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  18. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  19. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  20. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The ball is in your ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. snap — to click
  2. court — of a king
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. squash — to crush
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. bore — to tire
  8. bass — low music
  9. net — after costs
  10. snap — to snap out of it
  11. lash — an eyelash
  12. bore — to drill
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. bore — gave birth
  15. bass — the instrument
  16. net — in sport
  17. chair — a leader
  18. chair — to sit on
  19. court — of law
  20. squash — the vegetable
  21. squash — the sport
  22. bass — the fish
  23. court — for sport
  24. net — for catching

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