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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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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: wind · branch · bulb · game · safe · sharp · spell · file

  1. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  2. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  3. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  4. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  5. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  9. I've got to change the light ________________.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  15. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. It's one o'clock ________________.
  22. That was a fun ________________.
  23. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. wind — moving air
  2. file — a document
  3. game — wild animals
  4. safe — out of danger
  5. wind — moving air
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. file — a tool
  8. sharp — with an edge
  9. bulb — for light
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. sharp — clever
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. file — a line of people
  14. spell — magic
  15. safe — a strongbox
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. spell — letters
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. bulb — for light
  20. branch — a division
  21. sharp — exactly
  22. game — a match
  23. branch — of a bank
  24. spell — a short time

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