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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. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  8. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. My father caught me by the ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  13. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  14. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  15. Have you met the new head ________________?
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  22. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  23. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  24. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. branch — a division
  3. bulb — for light
  4. coach — pulled by horses
  5. board — to get on
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. branch — of a tree
  8. wind — to turn a key
  9. rash — hasty
  10. arm — part of the body
  11. wind — moving air
  12. board — a flat piece
  13. clip — for paper
  14. clip — a video
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. wind — moving air
  17. rash — a series
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. board — a committee
  20. clip — to cut
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. rash — on the skin
  23. arm — a part of something
  24. branch — of a bank

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