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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.

Make a worksheet

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
468
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: plane · lie · lash · march · cold · game · temple · branch

  1. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  2. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  6. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  9. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  10. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  14. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The ________________ took off on time.
  24. When was this ________________ built?

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

Answer key

  1. march — the month
  2. lash — an eyelash
  3. march — music
  4. game — a match
  5. lash — a whip stroke
  6. branch — of a tree
  7. cold — not warm
  8. plane — a tool
  9. cold — an illness
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. branch — a division
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. lie — to recline
  14. lash — to lash out
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. march — the month
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. temple — side of the head
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. game — wild animals
  23. plane — an aircraft
  24. temple — a place of worship

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