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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. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  10. When was this ________________ built?
  11. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  12. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  17. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  18. He is an ace ________________.
  19. Have you found your soul ________________?
  20. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  21. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. racket — for tennis
  2. cold — an illness
  3. bulb — for light
  4. cold — not warm
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. scale — in music
  7. temple — side of the head
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. mate — to breed
  10. temple — a place of worship
  11. racket — a loud noise
  12. temple — a place of worship
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. net — for catching
  17. scale — size or range
  18. pitcher — in baseball
  19. mate — a partner
  20. mate — a friend
  21. racket — for tennis
  22. net — in sport
  23. net — after costs
  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