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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: rest · wound · branch · rash · bay · row · wind · trunk

  1. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  8. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  9. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  13. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  20. My mare is ________________ in color.
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  23. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. wind — moving air
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. trunk — of a car
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. row — to paddle
  8. wound — past of 'wind'
  9. branch — a division
  10. rash — hasty
  11. rest — what's left
  12. row — a line
  13. wind — moving air
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. wound — an injury
  16. rash — a series
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. trunk — of a tree
  20. bay — a horse colour
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. wound — an injury
  23. rest — what's left
  24. rest — a break

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