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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  5. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  6. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  7. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  8. That was a fun ________________.
  9. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  10. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  11. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  12. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  13. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  14. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  15. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  16. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  17. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  18. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  19. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  20. The light ________________ burned out.
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  23. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  24. Is it ________________ for us to be here?

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. bulb — of a plant
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. content — the amount
  5. content — happy
  6. kid — child
  7. bass — the fish
  8. game — a match
  9. content — videos and posts
  10. bass — the instrument
  11. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  12. drill — a practice
  13. drill — army training
  14. safe — out of danger
  15. fan — to cool the air
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. drill — the tool
  18. bass — low music
  19. fan — a supporter
  20. bulb — for light
  21. kid — to tease
  22. safe — a strongbox
  23. game — wild animals
  24. safe — out of danger

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