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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. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. She's very handy with a ________________.
  4. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  7. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  8. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  9. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  10. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  13. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  14. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  15. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  16. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  17. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. He works in a ________________ mill.
  22. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. Beijing is the ________________ of China.

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

Answer key

  1. wound — an injury
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. saw — the tool
  4. hide — to keep secret
  5. kid — to tease
  6. fan — a supporter
  7. hide — to keep secret
  8. capital — a big letter
  9. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  10. hide — animal skin
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. kid — child
  13. fan — a supporter
  14. face — to confront
  15. face — part of the head
  16. capital — money
  17. face — to point toward
  18. wound — an injury
  19. bulb — for light
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. saw — the tool
  22. fan — to cool the air
  23. bulb — for light
  24. capital — a city

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