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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 muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  2. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  8. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  12. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  13. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  14. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  15. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  16. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  20. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  21. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  22. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  23. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  24. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.

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

Answer key

  1. track — a path
  2. leaves — of a tree
  3. bulb — for light
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. capital — money
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. leaves — to go away
  8. calf — a young animal
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. track — to keep track
  11. mine — for digging
  12. leaves — lets stay
  13. track — a song
  14. mine — belonging to me
  15. rule — government
  16. rule — to rule out
  17. capital — a city
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bark — to shout
  20. bark — a dog's sound
  21. capital — a big letter
  22. calf — of the leg
  23. bark — of a tree
  24. rule — a law

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