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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. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  2. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  3. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  7. When are we going to ________________?
  8. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  11. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  12. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. False peace will not ________________.
  15. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  18. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  19. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  22. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  23. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.
  24. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.

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

Answer key

  1. last — final
  2. scale — for weighing
  3. fall — to drop
  4. content — the amount
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. land — a country
  7. land — to come down
  8. scale — size or range
  9. content — happy
  10. fall — to drop
  11. kick — with a leg
  12. fall — the season
  13. bulb — for light
  14. last — to go on
  15. kick — in football
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. last — finally
  18. bowl — a dish
  19. land — ground
  20. bulb — for light
  21. kick — a thrill
  22. bowl — to roll
  23. scale — in music
  24. bowl — a football final

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