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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. I can't ________________ this cold.
  3. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  4. The ________________ told me I needed to practice harder.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. You don't need to ________________ round.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. Have you met the new head ________________?
  12. The train was so full that I had to ________________ all the while.
  13. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  19. A smaller training pitch was installed beside the main ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. We're almost out of ________________.
  22. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  23. Is the royal ________________ prepared for the journey?
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. stand — to bear
  3. chest — of your body
  4. coach — a trainer
  5. chest — a box
  6. pop — to visit
  7. net — in sport
  8. chest — of your body
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. coach — a trainer
  12. stand — on your feet
  13. cold — an illness
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bulb — for light
  16. net — after costs
  17. staff — employees
  18. staff — a stick
  19. stand — for spectators
  20. staff — employees
  21. pop — soda
  22. pop — music
  23. coach — pulled by horses
  24. net — for catching

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