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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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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  3. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  8. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  11. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  12. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  17. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  18. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. land — a country
  3. deal — to handle
  4. bulb — for light
  5. land — ground
  6. chest — of your body
  7. scale — in music
  8. pound — a weight
  9. land — to come down
  10. deal — an agreement
  11. deal — a big deal
  12. scale — for weighing
  13. chest — of your body
  14. bulb — for light
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. chest — a box
  17. pound — for dogs
  18. scale — size or range

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