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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. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  4. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  5. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  6. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. That was ________________ to happen.
  12. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  13. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  14. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  15. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  21. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  22. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  23. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  24. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. can — a tin
  2. file — a tool
  3. can — a tin
  4. club — for dancing
  5. degree — an amount
  6. fall — the season
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. bound — tied together
  9. bulb — for light
  10. fall — to drop
  11. bound — certain
  12. field — for sport
  13. can — to be able to
  14. degree — from a university
  15. field — farmland
  16. field — a subject
  17. bulb — for light
  18. degree — temperature
  19. file — a line of people
  20. file — a document
  21. bound — obliged
  22. club — a group
  23. fall — to drop
  24. club — for golf

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