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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  3. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  4. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  5. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  6. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  9. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  23. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  24. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. deal — a big deal
  3. craft — a skill
  4. race — humankind
  5. tear — to rip
  6. craft — a handicraft
  7. bulb — for light
  8. squash — to crush
  9. tear — from crying
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. race — the arms race
  12. swing — to play on
  13. race — a contest
  14. tear — from crying
  15. bulb — for light
  16. deal — an agreement
  17. squash — the sport
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. swing — music
  20. craft — boats
  21. swing — in golf
  22. deal — to handle
  23. squash — the vegetable
  24. straw — dry grass

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