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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. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  4. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  5. He is an ace ________________.
  6. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  7. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  10. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  11. That must've been a ________________.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  14. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  15. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  16. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  17. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  18. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  21. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  22. The ________________ took off on time.
  23. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. kid — to tease
  4. rush — to hurry
  5. pitcher — in baseball
  6. field — farmland
  7. tube — a container
  8. bulb — for light
  9. tube — in a tire
  10. plane — a tool
  11. rush — a thrill
  12. bulb — for light
  13. pitcher — a jug
  14. rush — hurry
  15. plane — in geometry
  16. board — to get on
  17. field — for sport
  18. board — a flat piece
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. pitcher — a jug
  21. board — a committee
  22. plane — an aircraft
  23. field — a subject
  24. tube — the underground

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