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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  3. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  4. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  7. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  8. He was locked up in a ________________.
  9. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  10. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  11. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  16. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  17. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  18. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  22. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  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. present — the time now
  3. squash — to crush
  4. rock — a stone
  5. march — music
  6. net — for catching
  7. squash — the sport
  8. cell — in a prison
  9. net — after costs
  10. march — the month
  11. rock — music
  12. march — the month
  13. cell — in biology
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. rock — to move gently
  16. squash — the vegetable
  17. present — there
  18. present — a gift
  19. bulb — for light
  20. net — in sport
  21. cell — a phone
  22. straw — to clutch at straws
  23. bulb — for light
  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