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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. How do you ________________ your surname?
  11. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  12. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  13. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  14. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  15. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  19. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  20. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bank — for money
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. bulb — for light
  5. spell — magic
  6. bank — of a river
  7. cold — not warm
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. spell — a short time
  10. spell — letters
  11. can — a tin
  12. bank — for money
  13. hand — help
  14. mine — for digging
  15. can — a tin
  16. cold — an illness
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. wax — in the ear
  19. can — to be able to
  20. hand — in cards
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. mine — an explosive
  23. wax — to grow
  24. mine — belonging to me

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