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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  6. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  7. Don't do anything ________________.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  10. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  11. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  12. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  13. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  21. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  22. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  23. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  24. Did you ________________ the meat?

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. bulb — for light
  3. season — of the year
  4. season — in sport
  5. wax — in the ear
  6. straw — to clutch at straws
  7. rash — hasty
  8. branch — a division
  9. jam — in traffic
  10. jam — a tight spot
  11. branch — of a tree
  12. lean — thin
  13. wax — for sculpting
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. wax — to grow
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. bulb — for light
  20. jam — to spread on bread
  21. rash — on the skin
  22. straw — dry grass
  23. rash — a series
  24. season — to add flavour

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