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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 116 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. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  2. He is an ace ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  8. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  18. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  23. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  24. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. wave — of the sea
  2. pitcher — in baseball
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. kid — to tease
  8. bat — in an idiom
  9. land — to come down
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pitch — completely
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. pitch — a sales talk
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. wave — with your hand
  18. kid — child
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. land — a country
  22. plane — in geometry
  23. plane — a tool
  24. land — ground

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