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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. The ________________ took off on time.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  8. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  11. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  12. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  19. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  20. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  21. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  22. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  23. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  24. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. plane — an aircraft
  4. degree — temperature
  5. wake — to stop sleeping
  6. capital — money
  7. capital — a big letter
  8. plane — in geometry
  9. bulb — for light
  10. patient — a sick person
  11. wake — before a funeral
  12. rule — to rule out
  13. bulb — for light
  14. rule — a law
  15. degree — from a university
  16. wake — a trail
  17. capital — a city
  18. rule — government
  19. degree — an amount
  20. scale — in music
  21. scale — size or range
  22. patient — a sick person
  23. patient — calm and waiting
  24. plane — a tool

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