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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: arm · lash · net · patient · calf · hand · spring · mine

  1. My father caught me by the ________________.
  2. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  5. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  6. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  11. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  12. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  17. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  18. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  19. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  20. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.

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

Answer key

  1. arm — part of the body
  2. spring — a coil
  3. spring — the season
  4. mine — belonging to me
  5. net — in sport
  6. calf — a young animal
  7. hand — in cards
  8. calf — of the leg
  9. net — for catching
  10. arm — a part of something
  11. mine — an explosive
  12. patient — a sick person
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. patient — calm and waiting
  18. lash — a whip stroke
  19. mine — for digging
  20. spring — of water
  21. hand — help
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. net — after costs
  24. lash — to lash out

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