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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. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  2. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. My mare is ________________ in color.
  6. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  9. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.
  17. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  18. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  21. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  22. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. branch — of a bank
  2. game — wild animals
  3. bulb — for light
  4. wound — an injury
  5. bay — a horse colour
  6. current — electric
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. current — of water
  9. wind — moving air
  10. game — a match
  11. drill — a practice
  12. wound — an injury
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. branch — a division
  16. current — happening now
  17. drill — army training
  18. drill — the tool
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. branch — of a tree
  21. wind — moving air
  22. game — a kind of play
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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