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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. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  6. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  7. I've got to change the light ________________.
  8. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  9. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  12. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  13. Why are you trying to ________________ your feelings?
  14. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  15. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  16. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. She was laid on a cow-________________ and covered by a coarse woollen blanket.
  19. We have nothing to ________________ here.
  20. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  21. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  22. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  23. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  24. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.

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

Answer key

  1. content — happy
  2. present — a gift
  3. content — the amount
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. rule — government
  6. can — to be able to
  7. bulb — for light
  8. bass — the fish
  9. rule — a law
  10. present — there
  11. content — videos and posts
  12. bass — the instrument
  13. hide — to keep secret
  14. can — a tin
  15. can — a tin
  16. bat — in an idiom
  17. bulb — for light
  18. hide — animal skin
  19. hide — to keep secret
  20. rule — to rule out
  21. present — the time now
  22. bat — the animal
  23. bat — for baseball
  24. bass — low music

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