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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  3. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  4. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  5. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  8. The King held a masked ________________.
  9. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  10. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  11. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  12. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  13. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  16. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  20. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  21. That must've been a ________________.
  22. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  23. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  24. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. cap — a hat
  3. ball — a great time
  4. file — a tool
  5. fall — the season
  6. last — to go on
  7. rush — hurry
  8. ball — a dance
  9. fall — to drop
  10. trunk — of an elephant
  11. rush — to hurry
  12. last — finally
  13. cap — a lid
  14. bulb — for light
  15. ball — a round shape
  16. file — a line of people
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. bulb — for light
  19. trunk — of a car
  20. cap — of ice
  21. rush — a thrill
  22. fall — to drop
  23. file — a document
  24. last — final

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