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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. The ball is in your ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  8. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  9. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  10. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  11. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  12. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  13. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  14. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  15. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  18. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  19. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. The water is too ________________.
  22. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. court — for sport
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bore — gave birth
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. court — of law
  7. court — of a king
  8. file — a document
  9. bore — to tire
  10. hide — to keep secret
  11. squash — the sport
  12. mate — a friend
  13. file — a tool
  14. hide — animal skin
  15. cold — an illness
  16. bulb — for light
  17. hide — to keep secret
  18. squash — to crush
  19. file — a line of people
  20. mate — a partner
  21. cold — not warm
  22. bore — to drill
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. mate — to breed

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