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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  8. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  12. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  13. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  14. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  15. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  16. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  17. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  18. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  19. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  22. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. track — a song
  4. bulb — for light
  5. mine — for digging
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. leaves — lets stay
  8. snap — to click
  9. track — to keep track
  10. present — the time now
  11. race — humankind
  12. leaves — to go away
  13. race — the arms race
  14. present — there
  15. leaves — of a tree
  16. present — a gift
  17. rock — to move gently
  18. snap — to snap out of it
  19. rock — a stone
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. mine — an explosive
  22. race — a contest
  23. bulb — for light
  24. track — a path

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