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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: ball · date · bat · deal · march · bulb · pitcher · cabinet

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Part of that ________________ required him to leave the singing group.
  3. The ________________ will go to the well once too often.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. We need to ________________ with this problem right now.
  6. What do you think of the new ________________?
  7. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  8. He is an ace ________________.
  9. She took a metal box from the top of the kitchen ________________.
  10. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. In all probability, the ________________ will fall.
  15. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  16. Fill up this ________________ with water.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The band played a military ________________ at the parade.
  19. We will have lived in Kyoto for eight years next ________________.
  20. The King held a masked ________________.
  21. Don't make such a big ________________ out of small things.
  22. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  23. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  24. His birthday is in either ________________ or April.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. deal — an agreement
  3. pitcher — a jug
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. deal — to handle
  6. cabinet — ministers
  7. ball — a great time
  8. pitcher — in baseball
  9. cabinet — a cupboard
  10. date — the fruit
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. ball — a round shape
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. cabinet — ministers
  15. date — on the calendar
  16. pitcher — a jug
  17. bulb — for light
  18. march — music
  19. march — the month
  20. ball — a dance
  21. deal — a big deal
  22. bat — in an idiom
  23. bat — the animal
  24. march — the month

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