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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 coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  4. False peace will not ________________.
  5. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. David sat on the ________________.
  9. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  14. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  18. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. swing — in golf
  2. file — a document
  3. hand — in cards
  4. last — to go on
  5. swing — music
  6. scale — size or range
  7. bulb — for light
  8. swing — to play on
  9. hand — part of the body
  10. hand — help
  11. wake — a trail
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. last — finally
  14. wake — to stop sleeping
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. scale — in music
  17. branch — of a bank
  18. file — a tool
  19. file — a line of people
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. branch — a division
  22. bulb — for light
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. last — final

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