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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: branch · wake · kid · face · file · bulb · lie · club

  1. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  2. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  3. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  11. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  14. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  19. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  20. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  23. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. face — to confront
  2. wake — to stop sleeping
  3. wake — before a funeral
  4. face — part of the head
  5. lie — to recline
  6. kid — child
  7. face — to point toward
  8. club — for golf
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. club — a group
  11. branch — a division
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. wake — a trail
  14. branch — of a tree
  15. file — a line of people
  16. kid — to tease
  17. bulb — for light
  18. branch — of a bank
  19. lie — an untruth
  20. club — for dancing
  21. bulb — for light
  22. lie — an untruth
  23. file — a tool
  24. file — a document

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