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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: cell · fall · kid · mark · wave · bulb · chest · ball

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. I was having a ________________ recording these guys.
  3. He was locked up in a ________________.
  4. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  5. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  10. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  11. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  12. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  13. The King held a masked ________________.
  14. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  15. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  16. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  17. My stomach aches so much that I can't ________________ asleep.
  18. The kitten curled into a ________________.
  19. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  20. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. In the ________________, covers are put over the fans in trains.
  23. He who climbs up, will ________________ down.
  24. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. ball — a great time
  3. cell — in a prison
  4. kid — child
  5. wave — a sudden rise
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. cell — in biology
  8. chest — of your body
  9. mark — a trace
  10. wave — with your hand
  11. wave — of the sea
  12. chest — of your body
  13. ball — a dance
  14. cell — a phone
  15. kid — to tease
  16. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  17. fall — to drop
  18. ball — a round shape
  19. mark — a grade
  20. chest — a box
  21. bulb — for light
  22. fall — the season
  23. fall — to drop
  24. mark — to pay attention

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