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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
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: object · ground · bear · branch · rush · lash · chest · cold

  1. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  2. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. That must've been a ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  17. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  18. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  23. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  24. There's no middle ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — a division
  2. chest — of your body
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. bear — the animal
  6. ground — crushed
  7. cold — an illness
  8. rush — hurry
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. chest — of your body
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. rush — a thrill
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bear — the animal
  16. ground — the earth
  17. chest — a box
  18. bear — to put up with
  19. object — a thing
  20. object — an aim
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. lash — to lash out
  23. object — to protest
  24. ground — a position

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