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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 124 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. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  3. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  4. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  5. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  6. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  7. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  10. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  11. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  12. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  13. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  14. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  15. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  16. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  17. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  18. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  21. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  24. It's one o'clock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. vault — a safe
  3. stem — a stem cell
  4. stick — a piece of wood
  5. club — for dancing
  6. sharp — with an edge
  7. stem — to come from
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. march — music
  10. shower — to wash
  11. vault — in gymnastics
  12. club — for golf
  13. shower — a meteor shower
  14. march — the month
  15. sharp — clever
  16. stick — a piece of wood
  17. stem — of a plant
  18. stick — to attach or keep to
  19. bulb — for light
  20. club — a group
  21. shower — rain
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. march — the month
  24. sharp — exactly

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