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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. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  2. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  8. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  11. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  14. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  15. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  16. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  17. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  18. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. Have you met the new head ________________?
  21. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  24. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.

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

Answer key

  1. perch — the fish
  2. rash — a series
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. bulb — for light
  7. wind — moving air
  8. drill — army training
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. clip — a video
  11. chip — to eat
  12. rash — hasty
  13. perch — for a bird
  14. clip — for paper
  15. drill — the tool
  16. clip — to cut
  17. coach — pulled by horses
  18. coach — a trainer
  19. chip — for betting
  20. coach — a trainer
  21. drill — a practice
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. wind — moving air
  24. wind — to turn a key

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