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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  6. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  7. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  8. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  9. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  10. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  11. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  12. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  13. Let us try to swim against the ________________.
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. Wood does not conduct electric ________________.
  18. False peace will not ________________.
  19. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  20. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  21. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  22. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. Here is a list of ________________ job openings.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. last — finally
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. cabinet — ministers
  6. hand — in cards
  7. content — videos and posts
  8. roll — a cake
  9. row — a line
  10. hand — help
  11. content — happy
  12. cabinet — a cupboard
  13. current — of water
  14. content — the amount
  15. roll — a list
  16. bulb — for light
  17. current — electric
  18. last — to go on
  19. row — to paddle
  20. row — a quarrel
  21. hand — part of the body
  22. last — final
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. current — happening now

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