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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. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  4. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. What do you think of the new ________________?
  9. When was this ________________ built?
  10. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  11. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  12. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  16. My father caught me by the ________________.
  17. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  24. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. branch — a division
  3. bat — the animal
  4. temple — a place of worship
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. plane — a tool
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. cabinet — ministers
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. bat — for baseball
  11. straw — a straw man
  12. cabinet — ministers
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. arm — a part of something
  16. arm — part of the body
  17. bat — in an idiom
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. lash — a whip stroke
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. temple — side of the head
  24. plane — in geometry

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