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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. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  3. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  4. When will it ________________ you to start?
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  14. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  15. There's no middle ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  18. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. suit — in cards
  3. field — a subject
  4. suit — to fit
  5. bulb — for light
  6. cell — a phone
  7. ground — crushed
  8. kick — in football
  9. kick — with a leg
  10. cell — in biology
  11. field — for sport
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. field — farmland
  14. kick — a thrill
  15. ground — a position
  16. bulb — for light
  17. suit — clothes
  18. ground — the earth

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