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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: hide · bulb · swing · wax · fork · track · perch · cold

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  3. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. David sat on the ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  14. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.
  15. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  16. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  22. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  23. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  24. He keeps ________________ of his days.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. swing — in golf
  3. hide — animal skin
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. cold — the Cold War
  6. bulb — for light
  7. perch — for a bird
  8. cold — an illness
  9. swing — to play on
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. fork — in a road
  12. wax — to grow
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. perch — for a bird
  15. perch — the fish
  16. fork — to eat with
  17. cold — not warm
  18. track — a song
  19. track — a path
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. swing — music
  22. hide — to keep secret
  23. wax — in the ear
  24. track — to keep track

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