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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  3. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  4. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  5. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  8. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  9. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  10. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. Did you ________________ the button?
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  21. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  22. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  23. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. stick — to attach or keep to
  3. pit — a hole
  4. pit — a fruit stone
  5. cue — a hint
  6. field — farmland
  7. stick — a piece of wood
  8. hand — help
  9. pit — in a race
  10. press — a publisher
  11. tear — from crying
  12. cue — for pool
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. cue — a signal
  15. press — to push
  16. tear — to rip
  17. bulb — for light
  18. tear — from crying
  19. hand — in cards
  20. field — for sport
  21. field — a subject
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. press — newspapers
  24. bulb — of a plant

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