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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 · arm · mug · rest · plane · cold · file · rock

  1. Is that Pat Hanrahan's ________________ looking hungry and willing.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  7. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Where did you ________________ them?
  10. I don't want to ________________ the boat.
  11. The water is too ________________.
  12. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  13. Which do you like better, ________________ music or classical music?
  14. We were using a ________________ as a seat.
  15. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. He refilled his coffee ________________.
  21. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  22. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  23. My father caught me by the ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. mug — a face
  2. bulb — for light
  3. cold — an illness
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. rest — a break
  7. file — a tool
  8. bulb — for light
  9. mug — to rob
  10. rock — to move gently
  11. cold — not warm
  12. plane — a tool
  13. rock — music
  14. rock — a stone
  15. rest — what's left
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. file — a document
  18. arm — part of the body
  19. rest — what's left
  20. mug — a cup
  21. file — a line of people
  22. arm — a part of something
  23. arm — part of the body
  24. cold — the Cold War

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