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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've got to change the light ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. She had a strange look on her ________________.
  5. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  6. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Sooner or later you'll have to ________________ the truth.
  9. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  10. Our bedroom windows ________________ the sea.
  11. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  12. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  13. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  14. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  15. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  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. bulb — for light
  2. file — a line of people
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. face — part of the head
  5. wound — an injury
  6. chip — to eat
  7. chip — for betting
  8. face — to confront
  9. file — a tool
  10. face — to point toward
  11. wound — past of 'wind'
  12. file — a document
  13. net — in sport
  14. net — after costs
  15. wound — an injury
  16. bulb — for light
  17. net — for catching
  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