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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 116 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. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  6. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  14. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  20. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. capital — money
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. branch — a division
  5. branch — of a tree
  6. stock — a soup base
  7. face — to point toward
  8. wind — moving air
  9. stock — goods
  10. club — for golf
  11. wind — moving air
  12. bulb — for light
  13. face — part of the head
  14. capital — a big letter
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. bulb — for light
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. stock — shares
  19. club — a group
  20. capital — a city
  21. club — for dancing
  22. face — to confront
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. bulb — of a plant

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