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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. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. What do you think of the new ________________?
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  7. The strong ________________ blew his hat off.
  8. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  11. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  12. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  13. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  14. That was a fun ________________.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  17. It was raining hard, and to make things worse, the ________________ was beginning to rise.
  18. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  19. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  20. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  21. He sold his goods at a loss to ________________ up his business.
  22. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. chair — a professorship
  3. tube — the underground
  4. cabinet — ministers
  5. bulb — for light
  6. staff — employees
  7. wind — moving air
  8. tube — a container
  9. chair — a leader
  10. staff — employees
  11. staff — a stick
  12. game — a kind of play
  13. tube — in a tire
  14. game — a match
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. chair — to sit on
  17. wind — moving air
  18. game — wild animals
  19. cabinet — ministers
  20. bulb — of a plant
  21. wind — to turn a key
  22. cabinet — a cupboard
  23. bat — the animal
  24. bat — in an idiom

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