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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  5. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  6. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  7. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  8. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  20. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  23. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. clip — to cut
  3. file — a tool
  4. rule — government
  5. rule — to rule out
  6. file — a line of people
  7. file — a document
  8. bear — to put up with
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. bowl — a dish
  11. bear — the animal
  12. pitch — a sports field
  13. band — a ring
  14. bowl — a football final
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. bulb — for light
  17. clip — for paper
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. band — a music group
  20. pitch — completely
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bear — the animal
  23. clip — a video
  24. rule — a law

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