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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: bulb · bark · spring · present · pitch · face · object · kid

  1. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  2. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  3. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  4. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  5. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  6. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  9. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  12. Birch trees have smooth white ________________.
  13. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  14. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  17. Our dog starts to ________________ whenever the doorbell rings.
  18. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. The sergeant loved to ________________ orders at us.
  21. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  22. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?

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

Answer key

  1. kid — child
  2. face — to confront
  3. object — an aim
  4. pitch — completely
  5. kid — to tease
  6. pitch — a sports field
  7. bulb — for light
  8. spring — of water
  9. pitch — a sales talk
  10. present — the time now
  11. face — to point toward
  12. bark — of a tree
  13. object — to protest
  14. face — part of the head
  15. bulb — for light
  16. spring — the season
  17. bark — a dog's sound
  18. spring — a coil
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. bark — to shout
  21. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  22. object — a thing
  23. present — there
  24. present — a gift

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