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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. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. The tickets are free of ________________.
  4. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  5. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  6. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  7. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  8. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  9. The water is too ________________.
  10. He works in a ________________ mill.
  11. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  12. Don't ________________ out at me just because you're upset.
  13. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  14. Where can I ________________ my mobile?
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. The spa offers ________________ extensions.
  20. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  21. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  22. He felt the sting of the whip's ________________.
  23. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  24. She's very handy with a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. cold — an illness
  3. charge — a price
  4. bat — in an idiom
  5. can — to be able to
  6. bass — the instrument
  7. bass — low music
  8. bat — the animal
  9. cold — not warm
  10. saw — the tool
  11. bass — the fish
  12. lash — to lash out
  13. can — a tin
  14. charge — electricity
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. can — a tin
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. lash — an eyelash
  20. saw — past of 'see'
  21. charge — in control
  22. lash — a whip stroke
  23. cold — the Cold War
  24. saw — the tool

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