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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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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: lash · capital · wave · branch · hide · bark · chair · band

  1. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  3. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  6. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  14. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  23. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. chair — a leader
  3. lash — an eyelash
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. band — a ring
  6. bark — of a tree
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. chair — a professorship
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. wave — a sudden rise
  11. capital — money
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. wave — with your hand
  14. hide — to keep secret
  15. branch — a division
  16. lash — to lash out
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. band — a music group
  19. chair — to sit on
  20. bark — to shout
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. hide — animal skin
  23. bark — a dog's sound
  24. capital — a city

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