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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 120 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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  5. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  6. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  10. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  11. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. spell — magic
  3. spell — letters
  4. snap — to snap out of it
  5. branch — a division
  6. rule — a law
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. kid — to tease
  9. branch — of a bank
  10. snap — to speak sharply
  11. kid — child
  12. swing — to play on
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. leaves — of a tree
  18. snap — to click
  19. leaves — lets stay
  20. swing — in golf
  21. bulb — for light
  22. spell — a short time
  23. swing — music
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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