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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 · cold · temple · straw · bear · bowl · net · pop

  1. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  2. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  7. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  8. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  12. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  13. You don't need to ________________ round.
  14. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  19. When was this ________________ built?
  20. We're almost out of ________________.
  21. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — the Cold War
  2. straw — a straw man
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. net — after costs
  5. cold — not warm
  6. lash — a whip stroke
  7. pop — music
  8. bowl — a football final
  9. net — for catching
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. temple — side of the head
  12. bear — to put up with
  13. pop — to visit
  14. bear — the animal
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. bowl — a dish
  17. bear — the animal
  18. cold — an illness
  19. temple — a place of worship
  20. pop — soda
  21. bowl — to roll
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. net — in sport
  24. straw — to clutch at straws

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