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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  5. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  11. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  12. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  13. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  14. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  15. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  16. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  22. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  23. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  24. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. kid — child
  4. dip — a sauce
  5. dip — to sink
  6. shower — to wash
  7. dip — to dunk
  8. present — a gift
  9. bulb — for light
  10. cue — a signal
  11. staff — employees
  12. cue — a hint
  13. staff — employees
  14. shower — rain
  15. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  16. staff — a stick
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cold — not warm
  20. cold — an illness
  21. cold — the Cold War
  22. present — the time now
  23. kid — to tease
  24. cue — for pool

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