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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: track · bore · bear · present · arm · degree · cold · bulb

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  7. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  8. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  9. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  12. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  13. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  14. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  19. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  20. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. degree — an amount
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. present — a gift
  5. bulb — for light
  6. cold — the Cold War
  7. bore — to drill
  8. degree — temperature
  9. bear — the animal
  10. cold — an illness
  11. bore — gave birth
  12. track — to keep track
  13. present — there
  14. arm — part of the body
  15. bear — the animal
  16. bear — to put up with
  17. bore — to tire
  18. track — a song
  19. track — a path
  20. present — the time now
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. degree — from a university
  23. cold — not warm
  24. arm — a part of something

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