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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: chip · bulb · stick · chair · tube · squash · cold · saw

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  3. I'll be taking the ________________.
  4. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  7. He works in a ________________ mill.
  8. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  9. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  10. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  11. Speak softly and carry a big ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. She's very handy with a ________________.
  15. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. This is the first time I've ever walked with a ________________.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  20. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  21. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  22. Fiction is obliged to ________________ to possibilities. Truth isn't.
  23. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  24. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. tube — a container
  3. tube — the underground
  4. chip — for betting
  5. cold — not warm
  6. cold — an illness
  7. saw — the tool
  8. saw — past of 'see'
  9. chair — a leader
  10. tube — in a tire
  11. stick — a piece of wood
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. bulb — for light
  14. saw — the tool
  15. chip — in a computer
  16. bulb — for light
  17. stick — a piece of wood
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. squash — the sport
  20. chip — to eat
  21. chair — to sit on
  22. stick — to attach or keep to
  23. chair — a professorship
  24. squash — to crush

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