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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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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: date · land · bulb · fan · row · chest · rush · chip

  1. That must've been a ________________.
  2. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  7. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  8. Have you settled on a ________________?
  9. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  10. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  11. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  12. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  13. When are we going to ________________?
  14. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  15. I had a ________________ with my boss today.
  16. The girl drawing a picture in the first ________________ is my niece.
  17. We had to ________________ the boat across the lake.
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. The light ________________ burned out.
  20. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  21. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  22. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.

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

Answer key

  1. rush — a thrill
  2. fan — to cool the air
  3. chip — to eat
  4. chip — in a computer
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. rush — to hurry
  7. chip — for betting
  8. date — on the calendar
  9. fan — a supporter
  10. land — ground
  11. chest — of your body
  12. date — the fruit
  13. land — to come down
  14. fan — a supporter
  15. row — a quarrel
  16. row — a line
  17. row — to paddle
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bulb — for light
  20. rush — hurry
  21. land — a country
  22. chest — of your body
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. chest — a box

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