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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  4. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  5. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  6. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  15. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  16. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  23. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. present — a gift
  3. net — after costs
  4. bark — of a tree
  5. net — for catching
  6. leaves — of a tree
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. leaves — lets stay
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. bark — to shout
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. bulb — for light
  14. straw — a straw man
  15. row — a line
  16. present — the time now
  17. capital — a city
  18. straw — to clutch at straws
  19. row — to paddle
  20. capital — money
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. present — there
  23. capital — a big letter
  24. net — in sport

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