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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. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  3. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  4. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  5. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. The ________________ was transferred to the cardiology ward.
  8. The nurse administered an injection to the ________________.
  9. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  10. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  11. He was locked up in a ________________.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  15. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. He is an ace ________________.
  18. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  21. The farmer was ________________ with the unruly horse.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  24. He took the fish out of the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. chip — in a computer
  3. bulb — of a plant
  4. content — happy
  5. straw — to clutch at straws
  6. content — the amount
  7. patient — a sick person
  8. patient — a sick person
  9. straw — dry grass
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. cell — in a prison
  12. chip — to eat
  13. cell — a phone
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. net — after costs
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. pitcher — in baseball
  18. chip — for betting
  19. bulb — for light
  20. net — in sport
  21. patient — calm and waiting
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. cell — in biology
  24. net — for catching

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