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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. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  4. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  5. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  6. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  7. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  8. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  12. False peace will not ________________.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  15. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  18. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  19. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  20. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  24. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?

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

Answer key

  1. rock — music
  2. bulb — for light
  3. fall — to drop
  4. last — finally
  5. fall — to drop
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. fan — to cool the air
  8. kick — with a leg
  9. bulb — for light
  10. spring — a coil
  11. rock — to move gently
  12. last — to go on
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. patient — calm and waiting
  15. last — final
  16. spring — the season
  17. fall — the season
  18. rock — a stone
  19. patient — a sick person
  20. patient — a sick person
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. kick — in football
  23. spring — of water
  24. fan — a supporter

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