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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. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  2. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  3. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  4. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  5. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  11. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  12. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  13. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  16. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. David sat on the ________________.
  20. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — an explosive
  2. snap — to click
  3. mine — belonging to me
  4. chair — a professorship
  5. chair — to sit on
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. rock — a stone
  9. bulb — for light
  10. perch — the fish
  11. prune — to trim
  12. perch — for a bird
  13. snap — to speak sharply
  14. chair — a leader
  15. prune — the fruit
  16. rock — music
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. mine — for digging
  19. swing — to play on
  20. rock — to move gently
  21. bulb — for light
  22. prune — to trim
  23. swing — in golf
  24. swing — music

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