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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. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  6. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  9. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  10. I've got to change the light ________________.
  11. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  16. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. That was a fun ________________.
  22. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  23. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  24. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. rash — hasty
  3. face — to point toward
  4. bulb — for light
  5. firm — decided
  6. firm — steady
  7. band — a music group
  8. staff — employees
  9. band — a rubber band
  10. bulb — for light
  11. degree — an amount
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. face — to confront
  14. degree — from a university
  15. game — wild animals
  16. staff — employees
  17. degree — temperature
  18. band — a ring
  19. staff — a stick
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. game — a match
  22. face — part of the head
  23. firm — a company
  24. rash — a series

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