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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  4. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  8. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  17. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  18. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  21. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. court — for sport
  3. court — of a king
  4. wave — a sudden rise
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. squash — to crush
  8. rush — to hurry
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. squash — the sport
  12. rush — hurry
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. ruler — for measuring
  17. squash — the vegetable
  18. trunk — of an elephant
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. court — of law
  21. ruler — a monarch
  22. branch — a division
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. trunk — of a tree

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