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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. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  4. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  7. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  11. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  12. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  15. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  16. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  19. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. Did you ________________ the button?
  23. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  24. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bear — to put up with
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. bear — the animal
  4. capital — money
  5. bulb — for light
  6. capital — a city
  7. band — a music group
  8. bear — the animal
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. scale — size or range
  11. spring — of water
  12. press — newspapers
  13. spring — a coil
  14. band — a rubber band
  15. capital — a big letter
  16. perch — for a bird
  17. perch — the fish
  18. spring — the season
  19. scale — in music
  20. bulb — for light
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. press — to push
  23. press — a publisher
  24. band — a ring

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