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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: court · leaves · kick · clip · branch · dip · lash · ruler

  1. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  4. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  5. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  10. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  11. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  12. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  17. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  18. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  19. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  23. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  24. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.

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

Answer key

  1. lash — an eyelash
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. leaves — to go away
  4. leaves — of a tree
  5. court — of a king
  6. clip — a video
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. court — for sport
  9. lash — to lash out
  10. kick — with a leg
  11. dip — to dunk
  12. lash — a whip stroke
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. branch — a division
  15. court — of law
  16. clip — for paper
  17. kick — in football
  18. leaves — lets stay
  19. ruler — for measuring
  20. clip — to cut
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. ruler — a monarch
  23. dip — to sink
  24. ruler — for measuring

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