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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: saw · bulb · race · wind · trunk · last · bound · fine

  1. He works in a ________________ mill.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  4. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  5. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  9. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  10. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  11. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  12. That was ________________ to happen.
  13. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  14. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  15. She's very handy with a ________________.
  16. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  22. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  23. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  24. False peace will not ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. last — finally
  3. fine — a penalty
  4. last — final
  5. saw — past of 'see'
  6. fine — all right
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. fine — high quality
  9. trunk — of a tree
  10. race — the arms race
  11. bound — obliged
  12. bound — certain
  13. trunk — of a car
  14. wind — to turn a key
  15. saw — the tool
  16. wind — moving air
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. race — a contest
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bulb — for light
  21. wind — moving air
  22. race — humankind
  23. bound — tied together
  24. last — to go on

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