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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
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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: mine · board · bulb · fall · track · trunk · rock · kid

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  3. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  4. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  5. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  6. I'm currently on the ________________ of directors.
  7. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  10. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  11. The captain is giving the order to ________________ the ship.
  12. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  13. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  14. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  15. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  16. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  17. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  18. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  21. ________________ games are popular in Germany.
  22. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  23. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  24. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. mine — belonging to me
  3. rock — music
  4. track — a path
  5. rock — a stone
  6. board — a committee
  7. track — a song
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. track — to keep track
  10. trunk — of a car
  11. board — to get on
  12. rock — to move gently
  13. fall — to drop
  14. fall — to drop
  15. fall — the season
  16. kid — to tease
  17. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  18. mine — an explosive
  19. bulb — for light
  20. mine — for digging
  21. board — a flat piece
  22. trunk — of a tree
  23. trunk — of an elephant
  24. kid — child

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