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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. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  7. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  10. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  11. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. That must've been a ________________.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  20. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  21. He is an ace ________________.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  24. I've got the luggage in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. wind — moving air
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. trunk — of a tree
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. pitcher — a jug
  7. degree — an amount
  8. bulb — for light
  9. mine — for digging
  10. mouse — the animal
  11. mouse — the animal
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. rush — a thrill
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. degree — temperature
  19. mine — an explosive
  20. wind — moving air
  21. pitcher — in baseball
  22. rush — hurry
  23. wind — to turn a key
  24. trunk — of a car

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