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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  3. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  4. The ball is in your ________________.
  5. I'll be taking the ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. It's one o'clock ________________.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  13. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  14. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  15. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  21. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  22. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  23. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. wind — moving air
  3. wind — to turn a key
  4. court — for sport
  5. tube — the underground
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. court — of a king
  8. bore — to tire
  9. bulb — for light
  10. sharp — exactly
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. bore — gave birth
  13. court — of law
  14. sharp — with an edge
  15. wind — moving air
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — to wash
  19. rule — a law
  20. bore — to drill
  21. rule — government
  22. shower — rain
  23. tube — a container
  24. sharp — clever

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