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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. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. Did you ________________ the meat?
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  6. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  7. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  13. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  14. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  17. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  20. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  24. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.

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

Answer key

  1. season — of the year
  2. bulb — for light
  3. season — to add flavour
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. lash — to lash out
  6. lash — an eyelash
  7. hand — in cards
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. vault — a safe
  11. degree — an amount
  12. vault — an arched ceiling
  13. lash — a whip stroke
  14. branch — of a bank
  15. bulb — for light
  16. trunk — of an elephant
  17. season — in sport
  18. degree — temperature
  19. hand — help
  20. degree — from a university
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. branch — a division
  24. vault — in gymnastics

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