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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: lean · hand · cell · patient · bound · saw · lash · wake

  1. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  4. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  10. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  11. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  12. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  13. He was locked up in a ________________.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. That was ________________ to happen.
  17. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. He works in a ________________ mill.
  23. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  24. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. bound — obliged
  4. wake — before a funeral
  5. cell — in biology
  6. lean — thin
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. hand — help
  10. lean — to bend
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. wake — to stop sleeping
  13. cell — in a prison
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. bound — certain
  17. bound — tied together
  18. cell — a phone
  19. wake — a trail
  20. hand — in cards
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. saw — the tool
  23. lash — to lash out
  24. lash — a whip stroke

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