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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: tear · object · lash · lie · degree · club · bulb · bound

  1. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  2. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  4. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  5. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  6. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  7. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  8. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  9. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  10. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  14. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  15. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  16. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. lie — an untruth
  2. club — for golf
  3. object — to protest
  4. tear — to rip
  5. bound — tied together
  6. club — a group
  7. object — a thing
  8. tear — from crying
  9. degree — from a university
  10. tear — from crying
  11. object — an aim
  12. bound — certain
  13. lie — an untruth
  14. club — for dancing
  15. lash — an eyelash
  16. lash — a whip stroke
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bound — obliged
  19. degree — an amount
  20. lash — to lash out
  21. degree — temperature
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. lie — to recline
  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