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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. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  9. You don't need to ________________ round.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. My mare is ________________ in color.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. We're almost out of ________________.
  15. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  16. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  19. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  20. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  21. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  22. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  23. Did you ________________ the meat?
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. season — in sport
  2. cold — not warm
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bay — to keep at bay
  5. bulb — for light
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. perch — the fish
  9. pop — to visit
  10. spell — magic
  11. spell — letters
  12. bay — a horse colour
  13. staff — employees
  14. pop — soda
  15. spell — a short time
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. cold — an illness
  18. bay — a part of the sea
  19. season — of the year
  20. perch — for a bird
  21. staff — a stick
  22. staff — employees
  23. season — to add flavour
  24. pop — music

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