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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  3. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  10. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  11. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. When are we going to ________________?
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  21. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  22. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  23. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  24. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. bark — to shout
  3. pitch — completely
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. bass — the fish
  6. land — a country
  7. bulb — for light
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. content — the amount
  10. prune — to trim
  11. capital — money
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. content — videos and posts
  14. bulb — for light
  15. land — to come down
  16. capital — a city
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. bass — low music
  19. content — happy
  20. prune — to trim
  21. land — ground
  22. pitch — a sales talk
  23. bass — the instrument
  24. bark — a dog's sound

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