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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. I'll be taking the ________________.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  9. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. We're almost out of ________________.
  16. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  19. You don't need to ________________ round.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  22. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  23. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  24. Do you need a ________________ with that?

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

Answer key

  1. tube — the underground
  2. bulb — for light
  3. pop — music
  4. tube — a container
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. mouse — the animal
  9. prune — the fruit
  10. scale — size or range
  11. prune — to trim
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. pop — soda
  16. scale — in music
  17. hand — in cards
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. pop — to visit
  20. bulb — for light
  21. prune — to trim
  22. hand — part of the body
  23. cold — an illness
  24. hand — help

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