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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. I can't ________________ this cold.
  7. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  8. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  11. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  12. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. It's one o'clock ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  20. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  21. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  22. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  23. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  24. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bulb — for light
  4. cue — for pool
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. stand — to bear
  7. cue — a hint
  8. wound — an injury
  9. sharp — clever
  10. stand — for spectators
  11. hide — to keep secret
  12. hide — animal skin
  13. wound — an injury
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. sharp — exactly
  16. cell — a phone
  17. degree — from a university
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. cue — a signal
  20. hide — to keep secret
  21. degree — temperature
  22. stand — on your feet
  23. degree — an amount
  24. cell — in biology

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