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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 120 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. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  2. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  3. Don't do anything ________________.
  4. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  5. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  6. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  7. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  11. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. The ________________ took off on time.
  20. You don't need to ________________ round.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. pop — music
  2. board — a committee
  3. rash — hasty
  4. plane — a tool
  5. board — to get on
  6. rash — on the skin
  7. wound — an injury
  8. bulb — for light
  9. scale — in music
  10. wound — past of 'wind'
  11. board — a flat piece
  12. pop — soda
  13. scale — size or range
  14. bulb — for light
  15. scale — for weighing
  16. spring — the season
  17. spring — of water
  18. rash — a series
  19. plane — an aircraft
  20. pop — to visit
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. wound — an injury
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. spring — a coil

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