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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. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Where did you ________________ them?
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  7. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  12. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  13. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  19. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  20. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  21. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  24. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — to tire
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bulb — for light
  4. mug — to rob
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. mug — a cup
  7. tear — from crying
  8. cold — an illness
  9. scale — in music
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. scale — size or range
  12. bore — to drill
  13. mug — a face
  14. cold — not warm
  15. prune — to trim
  16. tear — to rip
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. bore — gave birth
  19. tear — from crying
  20. scale — for weighing
  21. rush — to hurry
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. rush — hurry
  24. prune — to trim

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