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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 116 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
468
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: cold · branch · rash · cap · drill · lean · lash · fan

  1. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. Don't do anything ________________.
  9. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  12. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  17. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  18. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  19. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — to lash out
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. cold — an illness
  4. branch — a division
  5. drill — army training
  6. cold — not warm
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. rash — hasty
  9. lash — an eyelash
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. lean — to bend
  12. cap — a lid
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. drill — the tool
  16. cap — a hat
  17. drill — a practice
  18. cap — of ice
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. branch — of a tree
  23. lean — thin
  24. rash — a series

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