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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 120 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's taking a ________________ right now.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Don't do anything ________________.
  6. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  7. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. When was this ________________ built?
  13. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  14. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  17. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  23. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  24. That was ________________ to happen.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — to wash
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. rash — hasty
  6. present — there
  7. shower — rain
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. temple — side of the head
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. bound — obliged
  14. bound — tied together
  15. present — the time now
  16. stem — a stem cell
  17. lash — an eyelash
  18. rash — a series
  19. branch — a division
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. present — a gift
  23. stem — to come from
  24. bound — certain

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