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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.

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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: wound · branch · tear · lash · perch · bark · cell · race

  1. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  2. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. He was locked up in a ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  19. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  20. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  21. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  22. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  23. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — a phone
  2. tear — to rip
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. wound — an injury
  5. bark — to shout
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. lash — a whip stroke
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bark — a dog's sound
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. race — humankind
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. wound — an injury
  14. perch — the fish
  15. branch — a division
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. cell — in a prison
  18. race — the arms race
  19. cell — in biology
  20. tear — from crying
  21. tear — from crying
  22. bark — of a tree
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. race — a contest

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