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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  3. The King held a masked ________________.
  4. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  7. The ________________ market has crashed.
  8. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  15. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  16. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  17. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  18. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  19. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  20. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  21. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  24. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. patient — calm and waiting
  3. ball — a dance
  4. patient — a sick person
  5. bulb — for light
  6. band — a music group
  7. stock — shares
  8. fork — in a road
  9. scale — in music
  10. file — a document
  11. bulb — for light
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. file — a tool
  14. scale — size or range
  15. file — a line of people
  16. ball — a great time
  17. stock — a soup base
  18. fork — to eat with
  19. scale — for weighing
  20. ball — a round shape
  21. fork — a garden tool
  22. band — a ring
  23. stock — goods
  24. patient — a sick person

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