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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.

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: mug · tear · squash · cold · charge · track · bulb · bay

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  3. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. The tickets are free of ________________.
  6. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  7. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  10. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  11. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  12. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  16. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  17. Where did you ________________ them?
  18. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  19. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  22. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  23. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  24. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. mug — a cup
  3. squash — the vegetable
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. charge — a price
  6. tear — from crying
  7. track — a path
  8. cold — an illness
  9. tear — from crying
  10. track — to keep track
  11. charge — electricity
  12. squash — the sport
  13. bulb — for light
  14. cold — not warm
  15. bay — to keep at bay
  16. tear — to rip
  17. mug — to rob
  18. mug — a face
  19. track — a song
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. bay — a part of the sea
  22. cold — the Cold War
  23. squash — to crush
  24. charge — in control

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