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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. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  6. She ________________ him three sons and a daughter.
  7. He keeps ________________ of his days.
  8. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  9. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  10. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  11. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  12. He was locked up in a ________________.
  13. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  14. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  15. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  16. He is an ace ________________.
  17. Use a drill to ________________ a hole in the wall.
  18. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  19. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  20. This is my favorite ________________ on the album.
  21. Doesn't taking care of babies ________________ you?
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The muddy ________________ descends to a valley.
  24. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. chest — of your body
  3. chest — of your body
  4. bulb — for light
  5. bear — to put up with
  6. bore — gave birth
  7. track — to keep track
  8. cell — a phone
  9. cell — in biology
  10. pitcher — a jug
  11. chest — a box
  12. cell — in a prison
  13. wound — an injury
  14. pitcher — a jug
  15. bear — the animal
  16. pitcher — in baseball
  17. bore — to drill
  18. wound — past of 'wind'
  19. bear — the animal
  20. track — a song
  21. bore — to tire
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. track — a path
  24. wound — an injury

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