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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 116 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. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  2. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. Have you found your soul ________________?
  5. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. I've got the luggage in my ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  11. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  12. The tree's ________________ was scarred by lightning strikes.
  13. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  14. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  15. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  16. This piece is in a major ________________.
  17. The elephant has a huge ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  20. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  21. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  22. The light ________________ burned out.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mate — a friend
  2. pit — a hole
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. mate — a partner
  5. hand — help
  6. pit — in a race
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. trunk — of a car
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. key — the most important part
  11. mate — to breed
  12. trunk — of a tree
  13. content — the amount
  14. hand — in cards
  15. hand — part of the body
  16. key — in music
  17. trunk — of an elephant
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. bat — the animal
  20. content — happy
  21. key — for a lock
  22. bulb — for light
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  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