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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.

Words on the sheet
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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 · capital · lash · trunk · bear · mine · face · spell

  1. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  2. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  3. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  13. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  14. How do you ________________ your surname?
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  20. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — belonging to me
  2. lash — a whip stroke
  3. capital — a city
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. capital — money
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. bear — the animal
  13. lash — an eyelash
  14. spell — letters
  15. face — part of the head
  16. face — to point toward
  17. bear — the animal
  18. face — to confront
  19. spell — a short time
  20. spell — magic
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. branch — a division
  23. mine — for digging
  24. lash — to lash out

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