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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: march · leaves · lash · wind · ground · object · arm · game

  1. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  2. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. My father caught me by the ________________.
  7. That was a fun ________________.
  8. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  21. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — to protest
  2. wind — moving air
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. leaves — lets stay
  5. march — music
  6. arm — part of the body
  7. game — a match
  8. arm — part of the body
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. march — the month
  11. ground — the earth
  12. object — an aim
  13. ground — a position
  14. arm — a part of something
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. wind — to turn a key
  17. ground — crushed
  18. wind — moving air
  19. object — a thing
  20. game — wild animals
  21. lash — a whip stroke
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. march — the month

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