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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 116 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. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. I'll be taking the ________________.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  10. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  11. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  16. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. net — for catching
  3. bulb — for light
  4. tube — the underground
  5. kid — to tease
  6. band — a ring
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. face — part of the head
  9. tube — a container
  10. mine — an explosive
  11. band — a music group
  12. face — to confront
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — after costs
  15. kid — child
  16. chair — a professorship
  17. face — to point toward
  18. band — a rubber band
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. bulb — for light
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. chair — to sit on
  23. mine — for digging
  24. chair — a leader

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