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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: squash · kick · last · bulb · scale · wind · cap · rush

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  3. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  4. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  7. False peace will not ________________.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  10. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  11. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  12. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  13. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  14. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  15. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  16. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  17. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  18. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  19. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  20. That must've been a ________________.
  21. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  22. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  23. The light ________________ burned out.
  24. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. squash — to crush
  3. scale — size or range
  4. kick — a thrill
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cap — a hat
  7. last — to go on
  8. cap — a lid
  9. last — final
  10. last — finally
  11. wind — to turn a key
  12. rush — to hurry
  13. kick — with a leg
  14. kick — in football
  15. cap — of ice
  16. scale — for weighing
  17. squash — the sport
  18. scale — in music
  19. wind — moving air
  20. rush — a thrill
  21. squash — the vegetable
  22. rush — hurry
  23. bulb — for light
  24. wind — moving air

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