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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. He works in a ________________ mill.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  10. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  11. She's very handy with a ________________.
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  16. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  17. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  18. There's no middle ________________.
  19. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. saw — the tool
  3. lean — to bend
  4. drill — army training
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. bulb — for light
  8. drill — the tool
  9. capital — money
  10. ground — the earth
  11. saw — the tool
  12. season — of the year
  13. file — a line of people
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. lean — to rest against
  16. file — a tool
  17. ground — crushed
  18. ground — a position
  19. lean — thin
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. capital — a city
  22. file — a document
  23. drill — a practice
  24. season — in sport

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