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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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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: cue · plane · bulb · mark · tear · present · kid · straw

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  5. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  6. The ________________ took off on time.
  7. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  8. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  9. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  10. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  18. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  19. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  20. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  21. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  22. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  23. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  24. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. bulb — for light
  3. plane — a tool
  4. tear — from crying
  5. tear — from crying
  6. plane — an aircraft
  7. present — there
  8. cue — for pool
  9. cue — a signal
  10. cue — a hint
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. straw — dry grass
  13. mark — a trace
  14. bulb — for light
  15. mark — a grade
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. tear — to rip
  18. mark — to pay attention
  19. kid — to tease
  20. straw — to clutch at straws
  21. plane — in geometry
  22. kid — child
  23. present — a gift
  24. straw — a straw man

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