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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. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  2. That was a fun ________________.
  3. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  6. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  10. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  11. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  15. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  16. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  18. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  19. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  20. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. dip — to sink
  2. game — a match
  3. wound — an injury
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. wound — past of 'wind'
  6. bear — the animal
  7. game — wild animals
  8. net — after costs
  9. net — in sport
  10. wound — an injury
  11. bear — the animal
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — for light
  14. dip — a sauce
  15. game — a kind of play
  16. capital — a city
  17. net — for catching
  18. dip — to dunk
  19. straw — to clutch at straws
  20. capital — money
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. bear — to put up with
  24. straw — a straw man

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