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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. My father caught me by the ________________.
  6. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  17. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  18. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  19. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. The water is too ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. hand — in cards
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. arm — part of the body
  6. arm — a part of something
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. bank — of a river
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. hand — help
  12. bank — for money
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. vault — a safe
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. bank — for money
  17. vault — in gymnastics
  18. hand — part of the body
  19. lash — to lash out
  20. cold — an illness
  21. vault — an arched ceiling
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. cold — not warm

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