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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. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  2. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  7. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  10. The ________________ market has crashed.
  11. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  12. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  13. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  16. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  20. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  24. The train ________________ at six o'clock.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — past of 'wind'
  2. toast — the most admired
  3. degree — from a university
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. degree — an amount
  6. toast — a drink to someone
  7. toast — bread
  8. bulb — for light
  9. spring — a coil
  10. stock — shares
  11. net — after costs
  12. wound — an injury
  13. leaves — of a tree
  14. spring — of water
  15. leaves — lets stay
  16. stock — goods
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. wound — an injury
  19. degree — temperature
  20. net — for catching
  21. bulb — for light
  22. net — in sport
  23. spring — the season
  24. leaves — to go away

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