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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. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  4. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  8. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. My father caught me by the ________________.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  16. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  17. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  20. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Have you settled on a ________________?
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — a part of something
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. lash — a whip stroke
  4. spell — magic
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. hand — in cards
  7. lean — to bend
  8. branch — of a bank
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. spell — letters
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. arm — part of the body
  14. spell — a short time
  15. hand — help
  16. branch — a division
  17. arm — part of the body
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. perch — the fish
  20. lean — thin
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. date — on the calendar
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. date — the fruit

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