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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  5. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. He is an ace ________________.
  8. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  9. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  10. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  11. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  12. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  13. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  16. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  19. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  20. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  21. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  22. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  23. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bear — to put up with
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. hand — part of the body
  5. bear — the animal
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. pitcher — in baseball
  8. bear — the animal
  9. clip — to cut
  10. perch — for a bird
  11. hand — help
  12. net — for catching
  13. branch — of a bank
  14. bulb — for light
  15. hand — in cards
  16. branch — of a tree
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. clip — for paper
  19. clip — a video
  20. branch — a division
  21. perch — the fish
  22. net — after costs
  23. net — in sport
  24. perch — for a bird

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