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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: chest · chair · arm · spring · wake · branch · lash · bark

  1. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  9. My father caught me by the ________________.
  10. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  18. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  21. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. branch — of a tree
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. bark — a dog's sound
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. bark — of a tree
  9. arm — part of the body
  10. lash — an eyelash
  11. chest — of your body
  12. chest — a box
  13. spring — of water
  14. lash — a whip stroke
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. wake — a trail
  18. wake — to stop sleeping
  19. spring — the season
  20. chest — of your body
  21. chair — a leader
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. bark — to shout
  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