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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 120 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 water is too ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. It's one o'clock ________________.
  5. Borders were drawn on the map using a ________________, with no regard for cultural realities on the ground.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  8. A ________________ helps one to draw a straight line.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  12. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The ________________ took off on time.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  17. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  18. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  19. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  20. The people resisted their cruel ________________.
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bulb — for light
  3. cold — an illness
  4. sharp — exactly
  5. ruler — for measuring
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. plane — in geometry
  8. ruler — for measuring
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. snap — to click
  11. sharp — clever
  12. sharp — with an edge
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. plane — an aircraft
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. pit — in a race
  17. plane — a tool
  18. snap — to speak sharply
  19. foot — the bottom
  20. ruler — a monarch
  21. foot — a measure
  22. pit — a hole
  23. bulb — for light
  24. foot — part of the body

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