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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  6. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  7. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  8. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  9. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. That must've been a ________________.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  19. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  20. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  21. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  22. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  23. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. mine — an explosive
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. mine — for digging
  6. wound — past of 'wind'
  7. bear — the animal
  8. net — after costs
  9. mine — belonging to me
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. bear — the animal
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. pound — for dogs
  14. net — in sport
  15. rush — a thrill
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. bulb — for light
  18. rush — to hurry
  19. rush — hurry
  20. bear — to put up with
  21. wound — an injury
  22. pound — a weight
  23. wound — an injury
  24. net — for catching

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