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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. That was a fun ________________.
  2. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  3. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  4. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. It's one o'clock ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  11. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  12. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  18. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  22. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. game — a match
  2. dip — to dunk
  3. mark — a grade
  4. drill — army training
  5. drill — a practice
  6. game — a kind of play
  7. cold — an illness
  8. sharp — exactly
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. game — wild animals
  11. sharp — with an edge
  12. jam — a tight spot
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bulb — for light
  16. drill — the tool
  17. sharp — clever
  18. dip — to sink
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. mark — a trace
  21. dip — a sauce
  22. jam — in traffic
  23. bulb — for light
  24. mark — to pay attention

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