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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. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. How do you ________________ your surname?
  4. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  5. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  6. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  12. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  13. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  14. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. A ________________ is just a dried plum.

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

Answer key

  1. hand — help
  2. capital — money
  3. spell — letters
  4. hand — in cards
  5. spell — magic
  6. mouse — for a computer
  7. bulb — for light
  8. net — after costs
  9. can — to be able to
  10. net — for catching
  11. spell — a short time
  12. capital — a city
  13. capital — a big letter
  14. prune — to trim
  15. prune — to trim
  16. can — a tin
  17. hand — part of the body
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. can — a tin
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. net — in sport
  23. bulb — for light
  24. prune — the fruit

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