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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. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  18. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  19. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  23. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. lie — to recline
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. squash — the vegetable
  5. wake — a trail
  6. hide — to keep secret
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. chest — of your body
  9. lean — to bend
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. lean — thin
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. chest — of your body
  15. kid — child
  16. squash — to crush
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  19. hide — animal skin
  20. kid — to tease
  21. squash — the sport
  22. chest — a box
  23. lie — an untruth
  24. branch — a division

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