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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. The ________________ change colour in autumn.
  8. The train ________________ at six o'clock.
  9. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  12. David sat on the ________________.
  13. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  18. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  19. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  20. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  21. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  22. He always ________________ the window open while he sleeps.
  23. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  24. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. file — a tool
  3. bulb — for light
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. track — a song
  6. bulb — for light
  7. leaves — of a tree
  8. leaves — to go away
  9. file — a document
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. swing — music
  12. swing — to play on
  13. file — a line of people
  14. cold — not warm
  15. face — to point toward
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. cold — an illness
  18. face — to confront
  19. face — part of the head
  20. fork — in a road
  21. track — to keep track
  22. leaves — lets stay
  23. swing — in golf
  24. track — a path

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