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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 soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  2. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  3. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  8. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. She's very handy with a ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  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. drill — army training
  2. pop — music
  3. branch — of a bank
  4. saw — the tool
  5. hand — help
  6. key — for a lock
  7. saw — past of 'see'
  8. branch — of a tree
  9. pop — to visit
  10. bulb — for light
  11. hand — in cards
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. saw — the tool
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. branch — a division
  16. key — in music
  17. drill — the tool
  18. bulb — for light
  19. season — in sport
  20. season — of the year
  21. pop — soda
  22. drill — a practice
  23. key — the most important part
  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