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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. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The water is too ________________.
  4. The tickets are free of ________________.
  5. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  6. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  7. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  10. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  11. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  12. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. Biology is a ________________ of science.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. When are we going to ________________?
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  20. Our bank has a ________________ near the station.
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. He chopped down the ________________ with an ax.
  24. The light ________________ burned out.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. cold — an illness
  3. cold — not warm
  4. charge — a price
  5. charge — in control
  6. bay — to keep at bay
  7. land — a country
  8. present — a gift
  9. content — happy
  10. present — the time now
  11. present — there
  12. bulb — of a plant
  13. content — the amount
  14. branch — a division
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. land — to come down
  18. land — ground
  19. charge — electricity
  20. branch — of a bank
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. bulb — for light
  23. branch — of a tree
  24. bulb — for light

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