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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 120 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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  3. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  7. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  8. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. That was a fun ________________.
  11. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  12. Did you ________________ the meat?
  13. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  14. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  15. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  16. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. He works in a ________________ mill.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  22. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  23. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  24. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. fork — to eat with
  3. saw — past of 'see'
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cell — a phone
  7. season — of the year
  8. game — a kind of play
  9. content — happy
  10. game — a match
  11. cell — in biology
  12. season — to add flavour
  13. dip — to sink
  14. season — in sport
  15. content — videos and posts
  16. dip — a sauce
  17. bulb — for light
  18. saw — the tool
  19. content — the amount
  20. bulb — for light
  21. game — wild animals
  22. fork — a garden tool
  23. dip — to dunk
  24. fork — in a road

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