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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  4. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  10. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  11. I'll be taking the ________________.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  14. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  15. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  16. I can't ________________ this cold.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  20. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  21. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  22. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  23. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  24. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. rash — hasty
  3. stand — for spectators
  4. rash — on the skin
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. mate — a partner
  7. wound — past of 'wind'
  8. mate — to breed
  9. drill — army training
  10. wound — an injury
  11. tube — the underground
  12. drill — a practice
  13. mate — a friend
  14. race — a contest
  15. tube — in a tire
  16. stand — to bear
  17. bulb — for light
  18. rash — a series
  19. wound — an injury
  20. race — humankind
  21. stand — on your feet
  22. tube — a container
  23. drill — the tool
  24. race — the arms race

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