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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 light ________________ burned out.
  2. David sat on the ________________.
  3. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  9. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  12. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  13. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  16. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  17. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  22. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  23. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  24. I would like to have a ________________ here.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. swing — to play on
  3. swing — in golf
  4. shower — rain
  5. club — for dancing
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. shower — a meteor shower
  9. leaves — of a tree
  10. club — a group
  11. leaves — lets stay
  12. branch — of a tree
  13. leaves — to go away
  14. tear — to rip
  15. tear — from crying
  16. club — for golf
  17. tear — from crying
  18. shower — to wash
  19. rest — what's left
  20. bulb — for light
  21. rest — what's left
  22. branch — a division
  23. swing — music
  24. rest — a break

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