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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. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  2. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  3. When are we going to ________________?
  4. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  5. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  6. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  11. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  19. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  22. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  23. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  24. I had a ________________ with my boss today.

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

Answer key

  1. bat — in an idiom
  2. row — a line
  3. land — to come down
  4. chest — a box
  5. chest — of your body
  6. ruler — a monarch
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. bat — the animal
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. fan — a supporter
  11. row — to paddle
  12. branch — a division
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. land — ground
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. chest — of your body
  18. ruler — for measuring
  19. bat — for baseball
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. fan — to cool the air
  22. land — a country
  23. fan — a supporter
  24. row — a quarrel

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