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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. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  5. Have you met the new head ________________?
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  8. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  9. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  10. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  11. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  12. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  13. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  20. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  21. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  22. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — to tease
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. bulb — for light
  4. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  5. coach — a trainer
  6. pit — in a race
  7. shower — to wash
  8. pit — a fruit stone
  9. coach — pulled by horses
  10. calf — of the leg
  11. calf — a young animal
  12. shower — rain
  13. pit — a hole
  14. bulb — for light
  15. face — to point toward
  16. face — part of the head
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. prune — to trim
  20. face — to confront
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. shower — a meteor shower
  23. kid — child
  24. prune — to trim

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