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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  3. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  4. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  5. I've got to change the light ________________.
  6. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  7. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  8. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  9. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  10. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  11. What do you think of the new ________________?
  12. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  13. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  14. Did you ________________ the meat?
  15. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  18. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  19. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. This piece is in a major ________________.
  22. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  23. That must've been a ________________.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. season — of the year
  3. spring — of water
  4. rule — to rule out
  5. bulb — for light
  6. key — for a lock
  7. season — in sport
  8. key — the most important part
  9. wind — to turn a key
  10. rule — government
  11. cabinet — ministers
  12. rush — hurry
  13. spring — the season
  14. season — to add flavour
  15. cabinet — a cupboard
  16. rule — a law
  17. wind — moving air
  18. cabinet — ministers
  19. spring — a coil
  20. bulb — for light
  21. key — in music
  22. rush — to hurry
  23. rush — a thrill
  24. wind — moving air

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