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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  4. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  5. That was ________________ to happen.
  6. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  7. Have you met the new head ________________?
  8. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  9. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  10. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  11. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  14. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  15. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  16. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  23. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  24. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. hide — to keep secret
  4. firm — decided
  5. bound — certain
  6. march — music
  7. coach — a trainer
  8. firm — a company
  9. hide — animal skin
  10. field — farmland
  11. wound — an injury
  12. march — the month
  13. march — the month
  14. wound — past of 'wind'
  15. coach — a trainer
  16. bound — tied together
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. field — a subject
  19. bulb — for light
  20. bound — obliged
  21. field — for sport
  22. coach — pulled by horses
  23. wound — an injury
  24. firm — steady

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