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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  14. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  15. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  18. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. swing — music
  5. bound — certain
  6. bound — tied together
  7. swing — to play on
  8. swing — in golf
  9. chest — a box
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. cell — a phone
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. mine — for digging
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. chest — of your body
  16. prune — to trim
  17. chest — of your body
  18. cell — in biology
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. prune — to trim
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bound — obliged

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