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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  3. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  4. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  5. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  6. He is an ace ________________.
  7. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  8. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  9. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  10. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  11. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  12. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  13. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  14. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  17. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  21. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  22. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  23. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. snap — to speak sharply
  3. snap — to click
  4. can — to be able to
  5. sharp — with an edge
  6. pitcher — in baseball
  7. spring — the season
  8. club — for golf
  9. snap — to snap out of it
  10. spring — of water
  11. club — a group
  12. field — farmland
  13. field — for sport
  14. field — a subject
  15. club — for dancing
  16. can — a tin
  17. spring — a coil
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. bulb — for light
  20. can — a tin
  21. pitcher — a jug
  22. sharp — clever
  23. pitcher — a jug
  24. bulb — of a plant

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