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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. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  3. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  4. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  5. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  6. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  7. The water is too ________________.
  8. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  11. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  12. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  19. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  20. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  21. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  22. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  23. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. club — for golf
  3. chair — a professorship
  4. calf — a young animal
  5. wake — a trail
  6. wake — to stop sleeping
  7. cold — not warm
  8. face — part of the head
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. craft — a skill
  11. club — for dancing
  12. craft — a handicraft
  13. club — a group
  14. chair — to sit on
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. chair — a leader
  17. cold — an illness
  18. calf — of the leg
  19. craft — boats
  20. calf — a young animal
  21. wake — before a funeral
  22. face — to point toward
  23. face — to confront
  24. bulb — for light

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