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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: present · bay · degree · pit · key · kid · chest · bulb

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  3. My mare is ________________ in color.
  4. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  5. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  6. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  9. This piece is in a major ________________.
  10. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  11. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  12. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  13. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  16. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  17. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  18. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. key — the most important part
  3. bay — a horse colour
  4. chest — of your body
  5. chest — a box
  6. chest — of your body
  7. pit — a hole
  8. present — a gift
  9. key — in music
  10. pit — in a race
  11. bay — to keep at bay
  12. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  13. degree — an amount
  14. kid — child
  15. degree — from a university
  16. bay — a part of the sea
  17. bulb — of a plant
  18. present — the time now
  19. key — for a lock
  20. kid — to tease
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. degree — temperature
  23. bulb — for light
  24. present — there

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