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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  9. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. When was this ________________ built?
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  16. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  17. That was a fun ________________.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  20. I can't ________________ this cold.
  21. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. temple — a place of worship
  4. wound — an injury
  5. squash — the sport
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. stand — for spectators
  9. wound — an injury
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. branch — a division
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. temple — a place of worship
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. squash — to crush
  16. game — a kind of play
  17. game — a match
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. lash — a whip stroke
  20. stand — to bear
  21. mine — for digging
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. game — wild animals
  24. squash — the vegetable

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