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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. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  2. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  5. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  6. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  7. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  19. She's very handy with a ________________.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  23. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — to turn a key
  2. branch — of a tree
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. saw — past of 'see'
  5. mine — belonging to me
  6. branch — of a bank
  7. mine — an explosive
  8. saw — the tool
  9. kick — in football
  10. bulb — for light
  11. scale — size or range
  12. branch — a division
  13. wind — moving air
  14. mine — for digging
  15. kick — a thrill
  16. wind — moving air
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. trunk — of a tree
  19. saw — the tool
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. bulb — for light
  22. kick — with a leg
  23. trunk — of a car
  24. scale — in music

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