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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  4. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  5. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  12. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  17. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  20. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  23. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. mouse — the animal
  4. band — a rubber band
  5. trunk — of an elephant
  6. bulb — for light
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. mine — for digging
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. present — the time now
  11. mouse — for a computer
  12. band — a music group
  13. content — the amount
  14. trunk — of a tree
  15. content — happy
  16. bat — for baseball
  17. trunk — of a car
  18. bulb — for light
  19. mouse — the animal
  20. bat — the animal
  21. present — there
  22. band — a ring
  23. mine — an explosive
  24. bat — in an idiom

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