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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. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  10. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  11. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  19. He is an ace ________________.
  20. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  21. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  22. Have you found your soul ________________?
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.

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

Answer key

  1. wake — a trail
  2. mate — to breed
  3. file — a document
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. clip — to cut
  6. clip — for paper
  7. mate — a friend
  8. bulb — for light
  9. spring — the season
  10. wake — before a funeral
  11. wake — to stop sleeping
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. file — a tool
  14. deal — a big deal
  15. bulb — for light
  16. spring — of water
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. file — a line of people
  19. pitcher — in baseball
  20. spring — a coil
  21. deal — to handle
  22. mate — a partner
  23. clip — a video
  24. deal — an agreement

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