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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. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  2. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  5. You don't need to ________________ round.
  6. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  11. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  12. We're almost out of ________________.
  13. How do you ________________ your surname?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  17. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  22. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  23. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  24. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.

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

Answer key

  1. mark — to pay attention
  2. degree — temperature
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. mine — an explosive
  5. pop — to visit
  6. mine — belonging to me
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. mate — to breed
  9. bulb — for light
  10. lean — thin
  11. pop — music
  12. pop — soda
  13. spell — letters
  14. degree — from a university
  15. spell — magic
  16. mine — for digging
  17. degree — an amount
  18. bulb — for light
  19. mate — a friend
  20. mate — a partner
  21. mark — a trace
  22. lean — to bend
  23. mark — a grade
  24. spell — a short time

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