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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: band · rash · lean · hand · land · bulb · swing · board

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  3. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. David sat on the ________________.
  14. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Don't do anything ________________.
  17. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  23. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  24. I got dealt a bad ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. band — a ring
  3. lean — thin
  4. swing — music
  5. lean — to rest against
  6. lean — to bend
  7. bulb — for light
  8. band — a rubber band
  9. swing — in golf
  10. board — a committee
  11. hand — help
  12. land — to come down
  13. swing — to play on
  14. rash — a series
  15. bulb — for light
  16. rash — hasty
  17. board — to get on
  18. band — a music group
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. land — a country
  21. land — ground
  22. board — a flat piece
  23. hand — part of the body
  24. hand — in cards

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