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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 120 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
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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: branch · coach · pound · deal · lash · drill · net · spell

  1. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  7. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  8. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  9. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  10. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  11. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  17. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  18. Have you met the new head ________________?
  19. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  20. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  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. coach — pulled by horses
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. spell — letters
  4. pound — for dogs
  5. deal — to handle
  6. net — after costs
  7. lash — an eyelash
  8. drill — a practice
  9. coach — a trainer
  10. spell — a short time
  11. net — for catching
  12. spell — magic
  13. drill — army training
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. pound — a weight
  17. branch — a division
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. deal — an agreement
  20. drill — the tool
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. net — in sport
  23. branch — of a bank
  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