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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. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  5. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  6. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  7. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  8. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  9. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  10. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  11. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  12. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  13. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. When will it ________________ you to start?
  20. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  21. How do you ________________ your surname?
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.

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

Answer key

  1. can — to be able to
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. bulb — for light
  4. can — a tin
  5. racket — a loud noise
  6. shower — to wash
  7. file — a line of people
  8. suit — clothes
  9. spell — a short time
  10. shower — a meteor shower
  11. racket — for tennis
  12. suit — in cards
  13. racket — for tennis
  14. can — a tin
  15. spell — magic
  16. bulb — for light
  17. file — a tool
  18. shower — rain
  19. suit — to fit
  20. cold — an illness
  21. spell — letters
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. cold — not warm
  24. file — a document

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