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

Word bank: arm · shower · bulb · clip · lean · straw · cell · club

  1. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  2. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  3. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  4. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  5. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  12. My father caught me by the ________________.
  13. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  14. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  15. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  16. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  17. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. He was locked up in a ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. cell — in biology
  2. arm — a part of something
  3. club — for golf
  4. lean — to bend
  5. straw — a straw man
  6. shower — to wash
  7. arm — part of the body
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. lean — thin
  10. bulb — for light
  11. shower — a meteor shower
  12. arm — part of the body
  13. lean — to rest against
  14. straw — dry grass
  15. cell — a phone
  16. club — for dancing
  17. clip — a video
  18. shower — rain
  19. clip — for paper
  20. club — a group
  21. cell — in a prison
  22. clip — to cut
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bulb — for light

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