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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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Word bank
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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: hand · bulb · present · pop · rest · wake

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. I didn't ________________ up well this morning.
  8. We're almost out of ________________.
  9. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  10. The speedboat left a long ________________ behind it.
  11. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  12. Friends gathered at the ________________ to remember him.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  16. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  17. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. hand — help
  3. pop — to visit
  4. present — a gift
  5. pop — music
  6. bulb — for light
  7. wake — to stop sleeping
  8. pop — soda
  9. rest — what's left
  10. wake — a trail
  11. rest — what's left
  12. wake — before a funeral
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. bulb — for light
  15. rest — a break
  16. hand — part of the body
  17. hand — in cards
  18. present — the time now

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