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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: drill · tear · branch · march · rash · lash · arm · season

  1. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  2. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  5. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  6. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  7. Did you ________________ the meat?
  8. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  11. Don't do anything ________________.
  12. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  13. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. My father caught me by the ________________.
  19. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  23. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — on the skin
  2. lash — to lash out
  3. tear — from crying
  4. lash — a whip stroke
  5. arm — a part of something
  6. march — the month
  7. season — to add flavour
  8. tear — to rip
  9. drill — army training
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. rash — hasty
  12. drill — the tool
  13. tear — from crying
  14. season — in sport
  15. march — music
  16. drill — a practice
  17. rash — a series
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. march — the month
  20. branch — a division
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. lash — an eyelash
  23. season — of the year
  24. branch — of a bank

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