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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. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Have you settled on a ________________?
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. David sat on the ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  21. Have you met the new head ________________?
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Tom got himself in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. bulb — for light
  3. kick — in football
  4. date — the fruit
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. cold — not warm
  10. bulb — for light
  11. swing — in golf
  12. branch — a division
  13. coach — a trainer
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. swing — to play on
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. swing — music
  20. coach — pulled by horses
  21. coach — a trainer
  22. cold — an illness
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. jam — a tight spot

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