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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. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  2. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  5. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  8. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  9. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  16. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  17. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  21. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  22. He was locked up in a ________________.
  23. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  24. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a line
  2. trunk — of a tree
  3. bulb — for light
  4. scale — in music
  5. leaves — of a tree
  6. present — a gift
  7. scale — for weighing
  8. leaves — lets stay
  9. leaves — to go away
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. present — there
  12. bulb — for light
  13. clip — to cut
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. clip — for paper
  16. clip — a video
  17. cell — in biology
  18. present — the time now
  19. scale — size or range
  20. trunk — of an elephant
  21. trunk — of a car
  22. cell — in a prison
  23. cell — a phone
  24. row — to paddle

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