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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 116 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. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  4. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  7. What do you think of the new ________________?
  8. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  9. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  10. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  11. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  12. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The King held a masked ________________.
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  17. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  18. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  22. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  23. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bulb — for light
  3. field — for sport
  4. net — after costs
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. cabinet — ministers
  8. net — in sport
  9. net — for catching
  10. ball — a round shape
  11. bark — a dog's sound
  12. field — a subject
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. ball — a dance
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. wave — a sudden rise
  17. field — farmland
  18. wave — of the sea
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. bark — to shout
  21. wound — an injury
  22. ball — a great time
  23. wave — with your hand
  24. bulb — for light

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