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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  7. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  8. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  9. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  13. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  14. Don't do anything ________________.
  15. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. What do you think of the new ________________?
  18. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  19. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  22. He is an ace ________________.
  23. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. branch — of a bank
  3. tear — from crying
  4. chest — of your body
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fall — to drop
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. branch — a division
  9. chest — of your body
  10. bulb — for light
  11. rash — a series
  12. tear — to rip
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. rash — hasty
  15. pitcher — a jug
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. cabinet — ministers
  18. fall — the season
  19. cabinet — a cupboard
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. branch — of a tree
  22. pitcher — in baseball
  23. tear — from crying
  24. chest — a box

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