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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. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  3. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. We need to address the ________________ of the problem.
  12. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  13. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. The ________________ of 'teacher' is 'teach'.
  16. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  17. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  18. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  19. I've got to change the light ________________.
  20. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  21. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  22. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  23. The ________________ of a dandelion is edible, too.
  24. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. kick — a thrill
  3. bass — low music
  4. present — a gift
  5. kick — in football
  6. content — the amount
  7. kick — with a leg
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. bulb — for light
  11. root — the cause
  12. branch — a division
  13. bass — the fish
  14. present — the time now
  15. root — of a word
  16. content — happy
  17. content — videos and posts
  18. branch — of a tree
  19. bulb — for light
  20. prune — to trim
  21. branch — of a bank
  22. prune — the fruit
  23. root — of a plant
  24. prune — to trim

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