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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  3. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  4. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  5. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. The ________________ went through the wall.
  8. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  9. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  10. What do you think of the new ________________?
  11. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  12. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  15. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  16. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.
  17. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  18. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  19. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  20. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  21. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  22. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. march — music
  3. degree — from a university
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. kick — with a leg
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. race — humankind
  9. kick — a thrill
  10. cabinet — ministers
  11. march — the month
  12. march — the month
  13. degree — an amount
  14. bass — low music
  15. bass — the fish
  16. race — the arms race
  17. degree — temperature
  18. nail — for a hammer
  19. race — a contest
  20. nail — on a finger
  21. cabinet — a cupboard
  22. kick — in football
  23. bulb — for light
  24. bulb — for light

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