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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 124 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. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  4. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  5. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  6. Don't do anything ________________.
  7. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. How do you ________________ your surname?
  10. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  13. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  20. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  21. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. object — a thing
  2. bulb — for light
  3. spell — a short time
  4. stem — of a plant
  5. rash — on the skin
  6. rash — hasty
  7. object — an aim
  8. bat — the animal
  9. spell — letters
  10. object — to protest
  11. rash — a series
  12. spell — magic
  13. stem — to come from
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. snap — to snap out of it
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. scale — in music
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. scale — size or range
  20. stem — a stem cell
  21. snap — to speak sharply
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. snap — to click
  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