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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. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  2. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  7. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  12. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  13. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  14. The ball is in your ________________.
  15. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  16. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  17. When was this ________________ built?
  18. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  21. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  22. What do you think of the new ________________?
  23. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  24. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — to cool the air
  2. fan — a supporter
  3. cold — not warm
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bulb — for light
  6. cabinet — a cupboard
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. bulb — for light
  9. temple — side of the head
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. court — of a king
  12. prune — the fruit
  13. prune — to trim
  14. court — for sport
  15. temple — a place of worship
  16. prune — to trim
  17. temple — a place of worship
  18. pitch — a sales talk
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. pitch — a sports field
  21. court — of law
  22. cabinet — ministers
  23. pitch — completely
  24. cold — an illness

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