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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 · dip · foot · patient · cell · land · bowl

  1. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  4. When are we going to ________________?
  5. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  18. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  22. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  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. bowl — to roll
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. patient — calm and waiting
  4. land — to come down
  5. dip — a sauce
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. net — after costs
  8. bowl — a dish
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. cell — in biology
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. foot — the bottom
  13. net — in sport
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. foot — part of the body
  16. land — ground
  17. cell — a phone
  18. foot — a measure
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. land — a country
  21. patient — a sick person
  22. dip — to sink
  23. dip — to dunk
  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