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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: snap · branch · fall · lean · patient · chair · lash · land

  1. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  4. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  5. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  11. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  12. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  16. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  17. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  18. When are we going to ________________?
  19. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  20. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  23. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  24. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.

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

Answer key

  1. chair — to sit on
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. fall — the season
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. chair — a professorship
  6. lash — to lash out
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. chair — a leader
  9. lean — thin
  10. branch — of a tree
  11. patient — a sick person
  12. lean — to bend
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. fall — to drop
  15. lash — a whip stroke
  16. patient — calm and waiting
  17. land — ground
  18. land — to come down
  19. branch — a division
  20. snap — to click
  21. land — a country
  22. snap — to snap out of it
  23. lash — an eyelash
  24. fall — to drop

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