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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: fan · swing · bulb · field · object · trunk · straw · face

  1. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  4. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  8. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  17. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. David sat on the ________________.
  23. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. object — an aim
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. swing — music
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. bulb — for light
  7. trunk — of a car
  8. straw — dry grass
  9. swing — in golf
  10. face — to point toward
  11. bulb — for light
  12. object — a thing
  13. field — for sport
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. object — to protest
  17. face — to confront
  18. field — a subject
  19. field — farmland
  20. face — part of the head
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. swing — to play on
  23. straw — a straw man
  24. fan — a supporter

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