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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. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  2. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  5. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  6. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  7. He was locked up in a ________________.
  8. When was this ________________ built?
  9. Your daily life is your ________________ and your religion.
  10. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  14. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  20. A trickle of blood ran from her ________________ down her cheek.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. fall — to drop
  2. cell — in biology
  3. bulb — for light
  4. clip — to cut
  5. capital — money
  6. clip — for paper
  7. cell — in a prison
  8. temple — a place of worship
  9. temple — a place of worship
  10. capital — a big letter
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. date — the fruit
  13. fall — to drop
  14. date — on the calendar
  15. bulb — for light
  16. cell — a phone
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. capital — a city
  20. temple — side of the head
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. fall — the season
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. clip — a video

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