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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  9. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  10. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  11. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  14. This piece is in a major ________________.
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  17. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  23. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  24. He was blown up by a land ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bulb — for light
  4. field — farmland
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. mine — for digging
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. mine — belonging to me
  9. wound — past of 'wind'
  10. spell — magic
  11. field — a subject
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. object — an aim
  14. key — in music
  15. wound — an injury
  16. key — for a lock
  17. object — to protest
  18. wound — an injury
  19. object — a thing
  20. kick — in football
  21. spell — letters
  22. field — for sport
  23. key — the most important part
  24. mine — an explosive

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