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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. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  2. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  7. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  8. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  9. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  10. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  11. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  16. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  17. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  18. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  19. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  20. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  21. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  22. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. net — after costs
  2. pitch — a sales talk
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pitch — completely
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. race — the arms race
  7. straw — dry grass
  8. perch — for a bird
  9. perch — for a bird
  10. race — humankind
  11. bark — to shout
  12. key — for a lock
  13. straw — a straw man
  14. key — in music
  15. race — a contest
  16. pitch — a sports field
  17. perch — the fish
  18. net — for catching
  19. bark — of a tree
  20. key — the most important part
  21. bark — a dog's sound
  22. net — in sport
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. bulb — for light

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