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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 from the word bank in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

Word bank: bay · wave · bulb · cell · chest · march

  1. My mare is ________________ in color.
  2. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  3. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  4. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  5. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  6. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.
  7. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  8. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  9. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  12. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  13. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  14. He was locked up in a ________________.
  15. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  18. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a horse colour
  2. wave — a sudden rise
  3. chest — of your body
  4. cell — a phone
  5. march — music
  6. march — the month
  7. bay — to keep at bay
  8. wave — of the sea
  9. chest — a box
  10. bulb — for light
  11. bulb — of a plant
  12. cell — in biology
  13. chest — of your body
  14. cell — in a prison
  15. march — the month
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bay — a part of the sea
  18. wave — with your hand

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