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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. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  2. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  3. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  4. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  15. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  16. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  17. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  18. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  21. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  22. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  23. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  24. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.

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

Answer key

  1. spring — a coil
  2. pitch — completely
  3. straw — to clutch at straws
  4. foot — the bottom
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — for light
  7. spring — the season
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. cap — of ice
  11. spring — of water
  12. band — a music group
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. foot — part of the body
  15. pitch — a sports field
  16. plane — in geometry
  17. straw — dry grass
  18. plane — a tool
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. cap — a lid
  21. foot — a measure
  22. cap — a hat
  23. band — a ring
  24. band — a rubber band

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