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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. David sat on the ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  9. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  16. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  19. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  20. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  21. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  22. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. face — to confront
  3. tear — from crying
  4. present — a gift
  5. file — a document
  6. club — a group
  7. bulb — for light
  8. rock — music
  9. rock — a stone
  10. tear — from crying
  11. face — part of the head
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. swing — music
  14. file — a line of people
  15. club — for golf
  16. face — to point toward
  17. present — the time now
  18. present — there
  19. club — for dancing
  20. file — a tool
  21. tear — to rip
  22. swing — in golf
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. bulb — for light

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