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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 116 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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  3. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. What do you think of the new ________________?
  14. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  15. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  16. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  17. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  18. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  19. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  22. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. band — a music group
  3. march — music
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bear — the animal
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. kick — in football
  8. wind — moving air
  9. bear — the animal
  10. band — a rubber band
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. cabinet — ministers
  14. march — the month
  15. band — a ring
  16. march — the month
  17. kick — with a leg
  18. bat — in an idiom
  19. kick — a thrill
  20. wind — moving air
  21. bat — the animal
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — for light

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