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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  3. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  4. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  5. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  6. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  7. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  8. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  9. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  10. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  17. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  18. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  19. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  22. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bass — the fish
  3. wax — for sculpting
  4. mouse — the animal
  5. bat — for baseball
  6. mouse — the animal
  7. cell — a phone
  8. drill — the tool
  9. bass — low music
  10. pound — a weight
  11. cell — in biology
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. pound — for dogs
  15. bulb — for light
  16. drill — a practice
  17. mouse — for a computer
  18. wax — to grow
  19. drill — army training
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. bat — in an idiom
  22. wax — in the ear
  23. bat — the animal
  24. pound — to hit hard

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