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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  3. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  4. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  5. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  18. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  19. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  22. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  23. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. wound — an injury
  3. foot — part of the body
  4. foot — a measure
  5. mouse — the animal
  6. root — of a plant
  7. root — of a word
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. season — of the year
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. bulb — for light
  13. foot — the bottom
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. wound — an injury
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. root — the cause
  18. kid — to tease
  19. season — in sport
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. kid — child
  22. mouse — for a computer
  23. wound — past of 'wind'
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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