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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 120 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: swing · lean · bulb · wound · kid · fine · drill · stock

  1. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  2. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. David sat on the ________________.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  14. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  18. The ________________ market has crashed.
  19. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  20. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  21. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  22. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  23. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. lean — to bend
  2. swing — music
  3. wound — an injury
  4. wound — an injury
  5. stock — goods
  6. swing — to play on
  7. bulb — for light
  8. drill — army training
  9. drill — a practice
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. fine — a penalty
  12. fine — all right
  13. fine — high quality
  14. kid — to tease
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. bulb — for light
  17. wound — past of 'wind'
  18. stock — shares
  19. kid — child
  20. swing — in golf
  21. stock — a soup base
  22. lean — to rest against
  23. lean — thin
  24. drill — the tool

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