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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  3. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  8. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  9. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  10. Did you ________________ the meat?
  11. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  12. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  13. Don't do anything ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  16. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  20. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  21. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  24. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. staff — employees
  3. rash — on the skin
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bowl — a dish
  6. bulb — for light
  7. wind — to turn a key
  8. file — a tool
  9. season — of the year
  10. season — to add flavour
  11. season — in sport
  12. trunk — of an elephant
  13. rash — hasty
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. staff — a stick
  16. wind — moving air
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. bulb — for light
  19. staff — employees
  20. wind — moving air
  21. rash — a series
  22. file — a document
  23. bowl — a football final
  24. bowl — to roll

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