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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  4. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  5. The King held a masked ________________.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  9. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  13. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  14. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.

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

Answer key

  1. rash — hasty
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. clip — a video
  4. safe — a strongbox
  5. ball — a dance
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. bulb — for light
  8. kid — child
  9. rash — on the skin
  10. bat — the animal
  11. rash — a series
  12. clip — for paper
  13. ball — a round shape
  14. bat — in an idiom
  15. fall — the season
  16. bulb — for light
  17. kid — to tease
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. clip — to cut
  21. fall — to drop
  22. safe — out of danger
  23. fall — to drop
  24. ball — a great time

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