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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. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  4. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  5. We had a fire ________________ at school today.
  6. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  7. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  8. Manchester University ________________ is the university's academic publishing house.
  9. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  10. The soldiers did ________________ on the parade ground every morning.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  13. Did you ________________ the button?
  14. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  15. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  16. I need a ________________ to install the towel rack.
  17. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. The function of the ________________ is to provide the common people with facts.
  20. Did you ________________ the meat?
  21. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. file — a line of people
  2. bulb — for light
  3. calf — of the leg
  4. season — in sport
  5. drill — a practice
  6. date — on the calendar
  7. content — happy
  8. press — a publisher
  9. date — the fruit
  10. drill — army training
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. season — of the year
  13. press — to push
  14. content — the amount
  15. file — a tool
  16. drill — the tool
  17. file — a document
  18. bulb — for light
  19. press — newspapers
  20. season — to add flavour
  21. calf — a young animal
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. content — videos and posts

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