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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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Did you ________________ the button?
  4. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  7. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  8. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  11. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  12. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  15. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  21. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  22. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. mate — a friend
  3. press — to push
  4. bass — low music
  5. mate — a partner
  6. mate — to breed
  7. press — newspapers
  8. lash — an eyelash
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. lash — to lash out
  11. lash — a whip stroke
  12. straw — to clutch at straws
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. file — a document
  15. press — a publisher
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. bulb — for light
  18. track — a song
  19. bass — the fish
  20. file — a line of people
  21. bass — the instrument
  22. track — to keep track
  23. track — a path
  24. file — a tool

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