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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've got to change the light ________________.
  2. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  3. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  4. Champaud competed in the parallel bars, ________________, and pommel horse events.
  5. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  6. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  7. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  8. The ball is in your ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Lukas kept the diamonds in a locked ________________.
  11. The ________________ took off on time.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  14. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  17. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  18. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  19. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  20. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  21. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  22. The ceiling is a plaster ________________ painted with stars.
  23. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  24. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. drill — army training
  3. cap — a lid
  4. vault — in gymnastics
  5. tear — from crying
  6. court — of law
  7. drill — a practice
  8. court — for sport
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. vault — a safe
  11. plane — an aircraft
  12. bulb — for light
  13. band — a ring
  14. tear — from crying
  15. cap — of ice
  16. band — a rubber band
  17. plane — in geometry
  18. tear — to rip
  19. plane — a tool
  20. band — a music group
  21. cap — a hat
  22. vault — an arched ceiling
  23. court — of a king
  24. drill — the tool

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