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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 116 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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  2. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  5. Do not ________________ roses in the fall.
  6. I cannot ________________ this tree. It's too high.
  7. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  10. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  13. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  14. Have you found your soul ________________?
  15. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  16. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  17. A ________________ is just a dried plum.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?

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

Answer key

  1. hand — in cards
  2. content — happy
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. mate — to breed
  5. prune — to trim
  6. prune — to trim
  7. hand — help
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bass — the instrument
  10. bass — the fish
  11. bulb — for light
  12. content — videos and posts
  13. hand — part of the body
  14. mate — a partner
  15. content — the amount
  16. bass — low music
  17. prune — the fruit
  18. mate — a friend

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