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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  6. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  7. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  8. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  9. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  14. It's one o'clock ________________.
  15. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  16. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  17. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  18. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  21. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. spring — the season
  3. bulb — for light
  4. cell — in biology
  5. fork — in a road
  6. sharp — clever
  7. wave — with your hand
  8. fork — a garden tool
  9. wave — a sudden rise
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. patient — calm and waiting
  14. sharp — exactly
  15. spring — a coil
  16. sharp — with an edge
  17. wound — an injury
  18. wound — an injury
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. wave — of the sea
  21. spring — of water
  22. cell — a phone
  23. patient — a sick person
  24. bulb — of a plant

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