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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 120 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: race · lash · press · racket · straw · net · bass · temple

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  5. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. Did you ________________ the button?
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  14. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  20. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  21. When was this ________________ built?
  22. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  23. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. bass — low music
  3. net — after costs
  4. bass — the instrument
  5. temple — a place of worship
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. racket — for tennis
  8. race — humankind
  9. press — to push
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. net — in sport
  12. net — for catching
  13. press — a publisher
  14. press — newspapers
  15. race — a contest
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. straw — to clutch at straws
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. racket — a loud noise
  20. race — the arms race
  21. temple — a place of worship
  22. racket — for tennis
  23. bass — the fish
  24. straw — a straw man

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