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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. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  3. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  4. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  5. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  6. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  7. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  10. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  13. There's a broken ________________ in the bed.
  14. The hotel is built around a mineral ________________.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  17. The flowers bloom in the ________________.
  18. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  19. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  20. Have you found your soul ________________?
  21. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  24. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. mate — to breed
  3. kick — with a leg
  4. kick — in football
  5. content — the amount
  6. mine — an explosive
  7. mine — belonging to me
  8. game — a match
  9. mate — a friend
  10. mark — a grade
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. kick — a thrill
  13. spring — a coil
  14. spring — of water
  15. content — happy
  16. mark — to pay attention
  17. spring — the season
  18. game — a kind of play
  19. game — wild animals
  20. mate — a partner
  21. content — videos and posts
  22. bulb — for light
  23. mine — for digging
  24. mark — a trace

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

Make a worksheet (0 words)

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