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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. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  6. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  7. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  8. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  9. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. He is an ace ________________.
  14. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  17. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  18. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  21. Did you ________________ the button?
  22. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  23. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  24. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. bulb — for light
  4. game — a match
  5. field — for sport
  6. trunk — of an elephant
  7. wax — for sculpting
  8. wax — in the ear
  9. cap — a lid
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. field — farmland
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. pitcher — in baseball
  14. cap — a hat
  15. field — a subject
  16. cap — of ice
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. press — a publisher
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. trunk — of a car
  21. press — to push
  22. game — wild animals
  23. wax — to grow
  24. press — newspapers

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