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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. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  5. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  6. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  7. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  10. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  11. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  12. That was a fun ________________.
  13. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  14. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  15. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  16. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  17. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  23. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  24. The elephant has a huge ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. game — a kind of play
  3. bulb — for light
  4. capital — a big letter
  5. squash — to crush
  6. squash — the vegetable
  7. trunk — of a tree
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. wax — in the ear
  10. wax — to grow
  11. wind — moving air
  12. game — a match
  13. branch — of a tree
  14. wax — for sculpting
  15. branch — a division
  16. game — wild animals
  17. wind — to turn a key
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. capital — money
  20. wind — moving air
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. capital — a city
  23. squash — the sport
  24. trunk — of an elephant

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