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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  3. Vegetables slowly ________________ towards the light.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  7. He is as ________________ as a wolf.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  10. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  11. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  12. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  15. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  18. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  19. Don't ________________ against the wall. It's just been painted.
  20. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  21. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  22. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  23. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  24. Fill up this ________________ with water.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. pitcher — a jug
  3. lean — to bend
  4. kid — child
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. straw — dry grass
  7. lean — thin
  8. kid — to tease
  9. wind — moving air
  10. straw — a straw man
  11. bark — of a tree
  12. dip — to dunk
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bulb — of a plant
  15. dip — a sauce
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. dip — to sink
  18. wind — moving air
  19. lean — to rest against
  20. wind — to turn a key
  21. straw — to clutch at straws
  22. bark — a dog's sound
  23. bark — to shout
  24. pitcher — a jug

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