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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. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  2. It's one o'clock ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. The ________________ took off on time.
  5. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  6. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  7. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  15. The water is too ________________.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  18. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. The tickets are free of ________________.
  21. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  22. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. How do you ________________ your surname?

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

Answer key

  1. charge — in control
  2. sharp — exactly
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. plane — an aircraft
  5. perch — the fish
  6. spell — a short time
  7. cold — the Cold War
  8. bulb — for light
  9. sharp — clever
  10. plane — a tool
  11. cold — an illness
  12. row — a quarrel
  13. spell — magic
  14. row — to paddle
  15. cold — not warm
  16. row — a line
  17. perch — for a bird
  18. plane — in geometry
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. charge — a price
  21. perch — for a bird
  22. charge — electricity
  23. bulb — for light
  24. spell — letters

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