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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  4. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. You don't need to ________________ round.
  11. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  14. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  15. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  16. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  17. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  18. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  19. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  20. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  21. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  22. We're almost out of ________________.
  23. Don't do anything ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. chair — a professorship
  2. bulb — for light
  3. chair — a leader
  4. cue — for pool
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cue — a hint
  7. bulb — for light
  8. wound — an injury
  9. cue — a signal
  10. pop — to visit
  11. rash — on the skin
  12. spell — magic
  13. prune — to trim
  14. spell — a short time
  15. chair — to sit on
  16. wound — past of 'wind'
  17. rash — a series
  18. prune — to trim
  19. prune — the fruit
  20. wound — an injury
  21. pop — music
  22. pop — soda
  23. rash — hasty
  24. spell — letters

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