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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  3. Have you found your soul ________________?
  4. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  8. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  9. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  10. When are we going to ________________?
  11. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  12. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  13. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  14. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  15. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. Don't do anything ________________.
  22. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. I seem to be developing a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. pound — to hit hard
  3. mate — a partner
  4. snap — to speak sharply
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. snap — to snap out of it
  8. clip — for paper
  9. pitcher — a jug
  10. land — to come down
  11. pound — for dogs
  12. land — ground
  13. mate — to breed
  14. snap — to click
  15. clip — a video
  16. mate — a friend
  17. pound — a weight
  18. rash — a series
  19. land — a country
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. rash — hasty
  22. clip — to cut
  23. bulb — for light
  24. rash — on the skin

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