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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. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  5. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  9. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  12. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  15. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  16. Did you ________________ the meat?
  17. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  18. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  19. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  20. Don't do anything ________________.
  21. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  22. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  23. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — thin
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. branch — a division
  5. fine — high quality
  6. lean — to bend
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. club — a group
  9. branch — of a tree
  10. wind — moving air
  11. branch — of a bank
  12. fan — a supporter
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. fine — all right
  15. wind — moving air
  16. season — to add flavour
  17. season — of the year
  18. fan — a supporter
  19. club — for golf
  20. rash — hasty
  21. club — for dancing
  22. wind — to turn a key
  23. season — in sport
  24. rash — a series

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