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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 124 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. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  3. David sat on the ________________.
  4. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  5. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  6. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  12. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  15. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  16. Where did you ________________ them?
  17. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  22. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. cap — of ice
  3. swing — to play on
  4. shower — to wash
  5. cap — a hat
  6. snap — to click
  7. wind — moving air
  8. wind — moving air
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. shower — rain
  12. mug — a cup
  13. bulb — for light
  14. mug — a face
  15. swing — music
  16. mug — to rob
  17. cap — a lid
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. stick — a piece of wood
  22. stick — a piece of wood
  23. bulb — for light
  24. swing — in golf

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