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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. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  4. Jeff had to ________________ the pavement for three months before he found a job.
  5. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  6. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  7. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  8. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  9. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  10. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  11. A ________________ is equal to sixteen ounces.
  12. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  13. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  16. Rodrigo's family went to the dog ________________ to adopt a dog.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  19. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  20. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The ball hit the back of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. rock — a stone
  2. bulb — for light
  3. net — for catching
  4. pound — to hit hard
  5. squash — the sport
  6. hand — help
  7. net — after costs
  8. bat — for baseball
  9. mine — an explosive
  10. bat — in an idiom
  11. pound — a weight
  12. hand — part of the body
  13. bat — the animal
  14. bulb — for light
  15. rock — music
  16. pound — for dogs
  17. hand — in cards
  18. mine — for digging
  19. rock — to move gently
  20. mine — belonging to me
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. squash — to crush
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. net — in sport

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