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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. She's very handy with a ________________.
  2. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  3. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  4. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  5. He was locked up in a ________________.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  8. He works in a ________________ mill.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  11. The ________________ was covered with snow, as far as the eye could see.
  12. Add some ________________ pepper to it.
  13. There's no middle ________________.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  18. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  19. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  20. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  23. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. saw — the tool
  2. present — a gift
  3. can — a tin
  4. present — the time now
  5. cell — in a prison
  6. bulb — for light
  7. field — a subject
  8. saw — the tool
  9. cell — a phone
  10. field — for sport
  11. ground — the earth
  12. ground — crushed
  13. ground — a position
  14. cell — in biology
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bulb — for light
  17. can — to be able to
  18. can — a tin
  19. content — happy
  20. field — farmland
  21. present — there
  22. content — the amount
  23. saw — past of 'see'
  24. content — videos and posts

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