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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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468
Word bank
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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: content · fine · cold · row · roll · bulb · present · chip

  1. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  2. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  3. We're on a ________________ here.
  4. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  5. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  9. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  10. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  11. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  12. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  13. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  14. The water is too ________________.
  15. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  19. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  20. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  21. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. roll — a list
  2. content — videos and posts
  3. roll — on a roll
  4. present — a gift
  5. fine — all right
  6. bulb — for light
  7. chip — for betting
  8. row — a quarrel
  9. roll — a cake
  10. present — there
  11. fine — high quality
  12. content — happy
  13. fine — a penalty
  14. cold — not warm
  15. present — the time now
  16. row — a line
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bulb — of a plant
  19. content — the amount
  20. row — to paddle
  21. cold — an illness
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. chip — to eat
  24. cold — the Cold War

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