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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. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  2. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  5. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  6. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  7. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  10. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  11. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  12. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  13. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  17. I'll be taking the ________________.
  18. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  21. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  22. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  23. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  24. He is as ________________ as a wolf.

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

Answer key

  1. tube — a container
  2. lean — to bend
  3. bulb — for light
  4. object — a thing
  5. pitch — a sports field
  6. pitch — completely
  7. craft — boats
  8. bulb — for light
  9. object — to protest
  10. degree — from a university
  11. clip — to cut
  12. lean — to rest against
  13. craft — a skill
  14. clip — for paper
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. degree — temperature
  17. tube — the underground
  18. tube — in a tire
  19. clip — a video
  20. degree — an amount
  21. craft — a handicraft
  22. object — an aim
  23. pitch — a sales talk
  24. lean — thin

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