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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  3. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  4. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  5. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  6. Have you found your soul ________________?
  7. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  8. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  11. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  12. I've got to change the light ________________.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. That was a fun ________________.
  16. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  17. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. present — there
  3. mate — a friend
  4. cap — a hat
  5. cap — a lid
  6. mate — a partner
  7. game — wild animals
  8. mate — to breed
  9. bulb — for light
  10. land — a country
  11. cap — of ice
  12. bulb — for light
  13. land — to come down
  14. present — the time now
  15. game — a match
  16. land — ground
  17. game — a kind of play
  18. bulb — of a plant

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