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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: coach · ground · staff · spell · wake · lash · face · branch

  1. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  2. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  3. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. There's no middle ________________.
  6. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  7. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  11. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  22. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  23. Have you met the new head ________________?
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. staff — employees
  2. spell — a short time
  3. wake — to stop sleeping
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. ground — a position
  6. face — to point toward
  7. spell — magic
  8. spell — letters
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. coach — a trainer
  11. coach — pulled by horses
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. staff — a stick
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. face — to confront
  16. ground — the earth
  17. branch — a division
  18. staff — employees
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. face — part of the head
  21. wake — a trail
  22. ground — crushed
  23. coach — a trainer
  24. branch — of a bank

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