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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. The water is too ________________.
  3. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. David sat on the ________________.
  8. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  9. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  10. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  11. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  14. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  15. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  16. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  19. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  20. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  21. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  22. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  23. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  24. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. cold — not warm
  3. bear — to put up with
  4. chip — for betting
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bulb — for light
  7. swing — to play on
  8. safe — a strongbox
  9. bear — the animal
  10. wind — to turn a key
  11. band — a ring
  12. bulb — for light
  13. swing — in golf
  14. wind — moving air
  15. chip — to eat
  16. safe — out of danger
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. swing — music
  19. safe — out of danger
  20. band — a rubber band
  21. bear — the animal
  22. cold — an illness
  23. wind — moving air
  24. band — a music group

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