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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  5. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  12. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  18. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  19. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. pound — a weight
  5. scale — in music
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. pit — in a race
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. cold — not warm
  10. cold — an illness
  11. cell — a phone
  12. pit — a hole
  13. shower — to wash
  14. bulb — for light
  15. pound — to hit hard
  16. bulb — for light
  17. rush — hurry
  18. shower — a meteor shower
  19. pit — a fruit stone
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. shower — rain
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cell — in biology
  24. pound — for dogs

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