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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. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  2. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  3. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  17. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  18. That must've been a ________________.
  19. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  20. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  21. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  22. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.

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

Answer key

  1. fine — a penalty
  2. wake — a trail
  3. root — of a word
  4. cold — not warm
  5. rush — to hurry
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bass — low music
  8. root — the cause
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. bat — the animal
  12. bulb — for light
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. cold — the Cold War
  15. cold — an illness
  16. wake — to stop sleeping
  17. root — of a plant
  18. rush — a thrill
  19. bass — the fish
  20. fine — high quality
  21. fine — all right
  22. wake — before a funeral
  23. rush — hurry
  24. bat — for baseball

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