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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. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  4. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  5. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. There's no middle ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. The ________________ market has crashed.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  17. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  18. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  21. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  22. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  23. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pass — a permit
  2. bulb — for light
  3. pass — to succeed
  4. ground — the earth
  5. bark — to shout
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. ground — a position
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. stock — goods
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. stock — shares
  12. bulb — for light
  13. shower — to wash
  14. cell — a phone
  15. rock — music
  16. ground — crushed
  17. pass — to spend time
  18. bark — a dog's sound
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. cell — in biology
  21. bark — of a tree
  22. rock — a stone
  23. shower — rain
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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