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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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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. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. The carpenter used a ________________ to smooth the door.
  4. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  5. In geometry, a flat surface is called a ________________.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  9. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  10. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. Winning one ________________ isn't the same as dominating a sport.
  13. Atomic bombs are a danger to the human ________________.
  14. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  15. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  16. The ________________ took off on time.
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Only by prohibiting all nuclear weapons, we can together stop the arms ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. bulb — for light
  3. plane — a tool
  4. pit — a hole
  5. plane — in geometry
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bulb — of a plant
  9. pit — a fruit stone
  10. scale — in music
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. race — a contest
  13. race — humankind
  14. scale — for weighing
  15. scale — size or range
  16. plane — an aircraft
  17. content — the amount
  18. race — the arms race

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