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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  3. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. Where did you ________________ them?
  6. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  7. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  8. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  11. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. I'll be taking the ________________.
  14. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  18. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  22. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  23. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  24. We were using a ________________ as a seat.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. rock — music
  3. mine — for digging
  4. object — a thing
  5. mug — to rob
  6. tube — a container
  7. perch — the fish
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. bulb — for light
  10. object — an aim
  11. mug — a face
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. tube — the underground
  14. rock — to move gently
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bulb — for light
  17. tube — in a tire
  18. object — to protest
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mug — a cup
  22. mine — belonging to me
  23. perch — for a bird
  24. rock — a stone

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