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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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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: branch · lash · tear · march · snap · rush · last · file

  1. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  6. That must've been a ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  16. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  19. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  20. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  21. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  22. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — hurry
  2. march — the month
  3. file — a line of people
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. branch — of a bank
  6. rush — a thrill
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. tear — from crying
  9. last — final
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. march — music
  12. tear — to rip
  13. branch — a division
  14. march — the month
  15. lash — to lash out
  16. lash — an eyelash
  17. last — to go on
  18. file — a document
  19. branch — of a tree
  20. last — finally
  21. snap — to snap out of it
  22. tear — from crying
  23. snap — to click
  24. file — a tool

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