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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. How do you ________________ your surname?
  2. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  11. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  12. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  15. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  16. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  17. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  18. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  19. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  20. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  21. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  22. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — letters
  2. dip — a sauce
  3. bulb — for light
  4. straw — a straw man
  5. bulb — for light
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. net — in sport
  8. spell — magic
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. net — after costs
  11. trunk — of a car
  12. bear — the animal
  13. spell — a short time
  14. bear — to put up with
  15. straw — to clutch at straws
  16. root — of a word
  17. bear — the animal
  18. root — of a plant
  19. net — for catching
  20. root — the cause
  21. dip — to sink
  22. dip — to dunk
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. trunk — of a tree

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