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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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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: cell · racket · last · tear · lean · branch · vault · squash

  1. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  8. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  13. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  14. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  17. False peace will not ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. squash — the sport
  2. lean — thin
  3. racket — a loud noise
  4. lean — to bend
  5. squash — the vegetable
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. tear — to rip
  8. lean — to rest against
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. racket — for tennis
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. squash — to crush
  13. vault — a safe
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cell — a phone
  16. tear — from crying
  17. last — to go on
  18. cell — in biology
  19. branch — a division
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. last — finally
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. racket — for tennis
  24. last — final

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