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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. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  3. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  4. He is an ace ________________.
  5. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  6. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  7. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Don't do anything ________________.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  14. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  17. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  18. It's one o'clock ________________.
  19. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  20. I've got to change the light ________________.
  21. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  22. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. rule — a law
  3. sharp — clever
  4. pitcher — in baseball
  5. pitcher — a jug
  6. rule — government
  7. bowl — a football final
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. rash — hasty
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. cold — not warm
  13. rash — on the skin
  14. chip — in a computer
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. rash — a series
  17. pitcher — a jug
  18. sharp — exactly
  19. chip — for betting
  20. bulb — for light
  21. rule — to rule out
  22. sharp — with an edge
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. chip — to eat

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