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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. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  12. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. swing — to play on
  4. chair — a leader
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. swing — in golf
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. season — of the year
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. wound — an injury
  12. toast — a drink to someone
  13. rash — hasty
  14. bulb — for light
  15. swing — music
  16. rash — on the skin
  17. rash — a series
  18. toast — bread
  19. wound — an injury
  20. bulb — for light
  21. branch — a division
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. chair — to sit on
  24. season — in sport

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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