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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. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  5. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. He is an ace ________________.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  13. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  14. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  15. I've got to change the light ________________.
  16. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  17. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  18. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  21. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  22. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  23. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  24. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. row — a quarrel
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. bulb — for light
  4. pitcher — a jug
  5. bass — low music
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. cell — in biology
  8. staff — employees
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. pitcher — in baseball
  11. chest — a box
  12. pitcher — a jug
  13. craft — a handicraft
  14. craft — a skill
  15. bulb — for light
  16. chest — of your body
  17. staff — employees
  18. cell — a phone
  19. row — to paddle
  20. craft — boats
  21. row — a line
  22. bass — the fish
  23. staff — a stick
  24. chest — of your body

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