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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 116 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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  6. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. I'll be taking the ________________.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. My mare is ________________ in color.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  19. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  22. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. rash — a series
  3. rash — hasty
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. bay — a part of the sea
  6. swing — music
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bulb — for light
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. tube — a container
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. tube — in a tire
  13. swing — in golf
  14. tube — the underground
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. bay — a horse colour
  17. capital — a city
  18. hand — help
  19. bark — a dog's sound
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bark — to shout
  22. bay — to keep at bay
  23. capital — money
  24. bulb — of a plant

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