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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 felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  2. That was ________________ to happen.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  14. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  15. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  19. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  20. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — a whip stroke
  2. bound — certain
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. branch — a division
  5. stem — of a plant
  6. kid — to tease
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. stem — to come from
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. lash — to lash out
  12. kid — child
  13. wax — in the ear
  14. dip — to dunk
  15. dip — to sink
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. wax — for sculpting
  19. coach — pulled by horses
  20. wax — to grow
  21. bound — obliged
  22. bound — tied together
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. stem — a stem cell

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