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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. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  3. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  4. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  7. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  8. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  13. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  16. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  22. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  23. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  24. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. clip — for paper
  3. spring — the season
  4. fall — the season
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. clip — a video
  7. spring — a coil
  8. kick — in football
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. wind — moving air
  11. bulb — for light
  12. wind — to turn a key
  13. kick — a thrill
  14. fall — to drop
  15. deal — an agreement
  16. deal — to handle
  17. wind — moving air
  18. kick — with a leg
  19. rush — hurry
  20. bulb — for light
  21. fall — to drop
  22. spring — of water
  23. deal — a big deal
  24. clip — to cut

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