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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 dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  2. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  7. Where did you ________________ them?
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  10. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  13. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. He's taking a ________________ right now.

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

Answer key

  1. shower — a meteor shower
  2. branch — a division
  3. bulb — for light
  4. field — for sport
  5. wind — moving air
  6. field — a subject
  7. mug — to rob
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. field — farmland
  10. rash — on the skin
  11. wind — moving air
  12. mug — a face
  13. bat — in an idiom
  14. rash — a series
  15. bat — the animal
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. shower — rain
  18. mug — a cup
  19. wind — to turn a key
  20. rash — hasty
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. branch — of a bank
  23. bulb — for light
  24. shower — to wash

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