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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: bowl · bass · saw · present · cold · racket · lash · capital

  1. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  4. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  7. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  8. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. The water is too ________________.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  13. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  18. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. She's very handy with a ________________.
  22. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. saw — the tool
  3. bowl — a football final
  4. bass — the fish
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. racket — a loud noise
  7. bowl — to roll
  8. present — the time now
  9. present — there
  10. cold — not warm
  11. present — a gift
  12. bowl — a dish
  13. capital — a city
  14. bass — low music
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. capital — money
  17. racket — for tennis
  18. lash — to lash out
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. cold — an illness
  21. saw — the tool
  22. saw — past of 'see'
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. capital — a big letter

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