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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. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  9. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  13. This piece is in a major ________________.
  14. Where did you ________________ them?
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  19. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  20. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. My mare is ________________ in color.
  23. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  24. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. key — for a lock
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. snap — to click
  4. bowl — a dish
  5. cold — not warm
  6. bulb — for light
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. band — a music group
  9. bowl — a football final
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. band — a ring
  12. key — the most important part
  13. key — in music
  14. mug — to rob
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. mug — a cup
  19. bowl — to roll
  20. mug — a face
  21. cold — an illness
  22. bay — a horse colour
  23. snap — to speak sharply
  24. bay — to keep at bay

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