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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 was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  4. The King held a masked ________________.
  5. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  8. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  9. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  12. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  13. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  14. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  15. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  16. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  22. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. I have a corn on my right ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. ball — a great time
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. foot — a measure
  4. ball — a dance
  5. foot — the bottom
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. wound — an injury
  8. row — a line
  9. stick — a piece of wood
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. spring — a coil
  12. spring — of water
  13. row — to paddle
  14. calf — a young animal
  15. stick — to attach or keep to
  16. wound — an injury
  17. bulb — for light
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. stick — a piece of wood
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. spring — the season
  22. calf — a young animal
  23. bulb — for light
  24. foot — part of the body

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