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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  3. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  8. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  9. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. You don't need to ________________ round.
  18. How do you ________________ your surname?
  19. We're almost out of ________________.
  20. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  21. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  22. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  23. He is an ace ________________.
  24. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. race — a contest
  3. present — a gift
  4. race — humankind
  5. race — the arms race
  6. bulb — for light
  7. pitcher — a jug
  8. scale — in music
  9. present — there
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. present — the time now
  12. fine — all right
  13. scale — size or range
  14. bulb — for light
  15. spell — magic
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. pop — to visit
  18. spell — letters
  19. pop — soda
  20. fine — a penalty
  21. spell — a short time
  22. fine — high quality
  23. pitcher — in baseball
  24. pop — music

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