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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. The chairman did not ________________ out the possibility of a disagreement.
  3. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  4. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. He was locked up in a ________________.
  7. The light ________________ burned out.
  8. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  9. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  10. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  11. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  12. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  13. Will civil ________________ and democracy continue in Algeria?
  14. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  17. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  18. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  19. Remember our ________________: no talking to strangers, no matter what.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  22. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  23. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  24. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. rule — to rule out
  3. band — a music group
  4. straw — to clutch at straws
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. cell — in a prison
  7. bulb — for light
  8. cell — in biology
  9. chip — in a computer
  10. row — a quarrel
  11. shower — to wash
  12. band — a ring
  13. rule — government
  14. row — a line
  15. chip — for betting
  16. row — to paddle
  17. shower — a meteor shower
  18. shower — rain
  19. rule — a law
  20. chip — to eat
  21. straw — dry grass
  22. straw — a straw man
  23. band — a rubber band
  24. cell — a phone

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