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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. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  5. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  6. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  7. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  8. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  9. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  10. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  11. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  14. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  15. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  18. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  19. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  20. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  21. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. The flowers bloom in the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — size or range
  2. bulb — for light
  3. tube — the underground
  4. march — music
  5. fan — a supporter
  6. scale — in music
  7. trunk — of an elephant
  8. march — the month
  9. scale — for weighing
  10. spring — a coil
  11. tube — in a tire
  12. bulb — for light
  13. spring — of water
  14. trunk — of a car
  15. fall — to drop
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. trunk — of a tree
  18. tube — a container
  19. fall — to drop
  20. fan — to cool the air
  21. bulb — of a plant
  22. fall — the season
  23. march — the month
  24. spring — the season

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