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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. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  2. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  3. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  7. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  8. The hunter does not ________________ down with the prey.
  9. Have you found your soul ________________?
  10. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  11. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  12. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  13. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  14. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  15. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  16. A ________________ is a veil over the lips.
  17. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  18. That was ________________ to happen.
  19. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  20. Is it always a sin to tell a ________________?
  21. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  24. We are ________________ to obey laws.

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

Answer key

  1. chip — to eat
  2. mate — a friend
  3. chip — for betting
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. bulb — for light
  6. capital — money
  7. mate — to breed
  8. lie — to recline
  9. mate — a partner
  10. chip — in a computer
  11. pitch — a sales talk
  12. pitch — completely
  13. bound — tied together
  14. pitch — a sports field
  15. file — a document
  16. lie — an untruth
  17. capital — a city
  18. bound — certain
  19. capital — a big letter
  20. lie — an untruth
  21. file — a tool
  22. bulb — for light
  23. file — a line of people
  24. bound — obliged

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