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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 116 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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bulb · wind · shower · march · swing · present

  1. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. David sat on the ________________.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  13. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  14. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. bulb — for light
  3. march — the month
  4. bulb — for light
  5. present — there
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. swing — in golf
  8. march — the month
  9. march — music
  10. swing — to play on
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. shower — a meteor shower
  13. shower — rain
  14. present — a gift
  15. present — the time now
  16. wind — moving air
  17. shower — to wash
  18. swing — 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