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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. The water is too ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. I've got to change the light ________________.
  4. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  5. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  9. Don't do anything ________________.
  10. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  11. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  14. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  15. I'd give my right ________________ to be ambidextrous.
  16. She sat on the ________________ of the sofa.
  17. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  18. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  19. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. My father caught me by the ________________.
  22. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  23. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. bulb — for light
  3. bulb — for light
  4. band — a ring
  5. content — videos and posts
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. rash — on the skin
  9. rash — hasty
  10. calf — a young animal
  11. cold — an illness
  12. band — a music group
  13. calf — a young animal
  14. calf — of the leg
  15. arm — part of the body
  16. arm — a part of something
  17. bore — to tire
  18. bore — to drill
  19. band — a rubber band
  20. content — happy
  21. arm — part of the body
  22. rash — a series
  23. content — the amount
  24. cold — the Cold War

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