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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've got to change the light ________________.
  2. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  3. Have you met the new head ________________?
  4. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  5. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  6. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  7. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  8. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  9. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  10. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  13. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  14. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  15. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  16. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  17. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  18. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  19. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. We're on a ________________ here.
  22. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. spring — of water
  3. coach — a trainer
  4. chest — of your body
  5. spring — a coil
  6. coach — a trainer
  7. roll — a list
  8. chest — a box
  9. fine — a penalty
  10. drill — a practice
  11. fine — all right
  12. spring — the season
  13. coach — pulled by horses
  14. lean — to rest against
  15. fine — high quality
  16. roll — a cake
  17. lean — thin
  18. lean — to bend
  19. chest — of your body
  20. bulb — for light
  21. roll — on a roll
  22. drill — army training
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. drill — the tool

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