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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 120 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. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  3. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  4. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  5. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  6. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  9. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  15. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  16. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  19. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  24. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. mouse — the animal
  3. capital — a big letter
  4. mine — for digging
  5. mine — an explosive
  6. band — a rubber band
  7. bulb — for light
  8. wave — a sudden rise
  9. race — humankind
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. capital — a city
  12. mine — belonging to me
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. mouse — for a computer
  15. race — the arms race
  16. trunk — of a car
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. mouse — the animal
  19. wave — of the sea
  20. band — a music group
  21. trunk — of a tree
  22. band — a ring
  23. capital — money
  24. race — a contest

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