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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. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  2. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  3. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  4. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  5. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  6. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  7. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  8. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. How do you ________________ your surname?
  12. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  13. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  14. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  18. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  19. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  20. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  21. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  22. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  23. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. spell — a short time
  2. bat — the animal
  3. bat — in an idiom
  4. bear — to put up with
  5. bear — the animal
  6. root — of a plant
  7. band — a rubber band
  8. bear — the animal
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. bulb — for light
  11. spell — letters
  12. root — of a word
  13. root — the cause
  14. file — a line of people
  15. file — a tool
  16. bulb — for light
  17. deal — to handle
  18. band — a ring
  19. deal — a big deal
  20. bat — for baseball
  21. spell — magic
  22. file — a document
  23. deal — an agreement
  24. band — a music group

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