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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 flowers bloom in the ________________.
  2. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  7. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. She's very handy with a ________________.
  11. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  14. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. He works in a ________________ mill.
  17. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. David sat on the ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — the season
  2. saw — past of 'see'
  3. fall — to drop
  4. branch — of a tree
  5. swing — music
  6. branch — a division
  7. branch — of a bank
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. saw — the tool
  11. fall — the season
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. lean — thin
  14. lean — to bend
  15. tube — the underground
  16. saw — the tool
  17. band — a ring
  18. spring — a coil
  19. swing — in golf
  20. band — a music group
  21. fall — to drop
  22. tube — a container
  23. swing — to play on
  24. spring — of water

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