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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. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  11. David sat on the ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  17. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  18. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  19. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  20. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  21. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  22. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  23. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. clip — a video
  3. prune — the fruit
  4. clip — to cut
  5. tear — from crying
  6. prune — to trim
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. tear — from crying
  9. spell — letters
  10. leaves — lets stay
  11. swing — to play on
  12. spell — magic
  13. tear — to rip
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. swing — music
  16. prune — to trim
  17. calf — a young animal
  18. spell — a short time
  19. calf — a young animal
  20. clip — for paper
  21. swing — in golf
  22. leaves — of a tree
  23. leaves — to go away
  24. bulb — for light

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