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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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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. capital — money
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. wound — past of 'wind'
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. wound — an injury
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. dip — to dunk
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bear — to put up with
  11. bear — the animal
  12. wound — an injury
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. bulb — for light
  15. capital — a city
  16. bear — the animal
  17. dip — to sink
  18. capital — a big letter

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