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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 120 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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  3. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  4. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  5. Did you ________________ the meat?
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  8. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  9. When are we going to ________________?
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  12. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  13. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  14. When a clown is made king, the ________________ becomes a circus.
  15. The ________________ found him guilty of stealing money.
  16. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  17. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  18. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  19. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  20. The ball is in your ________________.
  21. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  24. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. dip — to sink
  3. shower — a meteor shower
  4. shower — rain
  5. season — to add flavour
  6. bulb — for light
  7. land — ground
  8. trunk — of an elephant
  9. land — to come down
  10. land — a country
  11. season — of the year
  12. trunk — of a car
  13. dip — to dunk
  14. court — of a king
  15. court — of law
  16. spring — of water
  17. dip — a sauce
  18. season — in sport
  19. spring — the season
  20. court — for sport
  21. shower — to wash
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. trunk — of a tree
  24. spring — a coil

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