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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: season · bulb · scale · ground · fine · rule · cold · snap

  1. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  7. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  8. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  11. There's no middle ________________.
  12. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  13. The water is too ________________.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  16. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  17. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  18. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  19. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  20. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  21. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  22. Did you ________________ the meat?
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. scale — in music
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. scale — size or range
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. snap — to snap out of it
  7. cold — an illness
  8. season — of the year
  9. fine — high quality
  10. fine — a penalty
  11. ground — a position
  12. fine — all right
  13. cold — not warm
  14. bulb — for light
  15. snap — to speak sharply
  16. rule — a law
  17. rule — to rule out
  18. snap — to click
  19. rule — government
  20. ground — the earth
  21. ground — crushed
  22. season — to add flavour
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. season — in sport

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