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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  3. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  10. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  11. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  14. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  15. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  24. Biology is a ________________ of science.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. face — part of the head
  3. mark — to pay attention
  4. bulb — for light
  5. face — to confront
  6. club — a group
  7. mark — a grade
  8. clip — for paper
  9. club — for dancing
  10. branch — of a bank
  11. clip — a video
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. scale — in music
  14. club — for golf
  15. branch — of a tree
  16. bulb — for light
  17. rest — a break
  18. scale — size or range
  19. rest — what's left
  20. clip — to cut
  21. mark — a trace
  22. face — to point toward
  23. rest — what's left
  24. branch — a division

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