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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  3. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  4. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. We're on a ________________ here.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  14. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. march — the month
  3. shower — rain
  4. bark — to shout
  5. march — music
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. shower — to wash
  8. roll — on a roll
  9. rash — hasty
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. roll — a cake
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. bark — a dog's sound
  14. wave — with your hand
  15. roll — a list
  16. rash — a series
  17. sharp — clever
  18. rash — on the skin
  19. bulb — for light
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. wave — of the sea
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. march — the month
  24. shower — a meteor shower

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