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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: bore · spring · bulb · suit · rash · snap · toast · cold

  1. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  2. Don't do anything ________________.
  3. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  4. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  5. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  6. When will it ________________ you to start?
  7. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  8. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  11. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  12. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  13. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  14. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  15. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  16. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  17. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  18. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  19. The water is too ________________.
  20. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  24. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bore — gave birth
  2. rash — hasty
  3. toast — bread
  4. spring — a coil
  5. spring — the season
  6. suit — to fit
  7. rash — a series
  8. bore — to drill
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. snap — to click
  11. snap — to snap out of it
  12. cold — an illness
  13. toast — the most admired
  14. toast — a drink to someone
  15. suit — clothes
  16. cold — the Cold War
  17. suit — in cards
  18. bore — to tire
  19. cold — not warm
  20. snap — to speak sharply
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. rash — on the skin
  24. spring — of water

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