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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 116 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. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. I can't ________________ this cold.
  4. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  5. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  6. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  11. The ball is in your ________________.
  12. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  20. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. stand — to bear
  4. lash — to lash out
  5. lash — an eyelash
  6. stand — on your feet
  7. file — a line of people
  8. content — the amount
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. leaves — of a tree
  11. court — for sport
  12. court — of a king
  13. court — of law
  14. file — a document
  15. stand — for spectators
  16. clip — a video
  17. branch — a division
  18. file — a tool
  19. clip — to cut
  20. leaves — lets stay
  21. content — happy
  22. content — videos and posts
  23. clip — for paper
  24. leaves — to go away

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