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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 farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  2. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  5. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  6. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  7. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  10. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  11. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  12. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  15. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  16. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  17. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  18. We're on a ________________ here.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  21. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  22. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. patient — calm and waiting
  2. lean — thin
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. face — to point toward
  5. degree — from a university
  6. lean — to bend
  7. lean — to rest against
  8. bulb — for light
  9. roll — a list
  10. degree — temperature
  11. roll — a cake
  12. face — to confront
  13. degree — an amount
  14. patient — a sick person
  15. rock — a stone
  16. patient — a sick person
  17. rock — music
  18. roll — on a roll
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. face — part of the head
  21. mine — belonging to me
  22. mine — for digging
  23. bulb — for light
  24. mine — an explosive

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