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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: bulb · bear · foot · staff · cold · jam · hand · file

  1. I have a corn on my right ________________.
  2. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  3. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  4. The light ________________ burned out.
  5. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  8. I've got to change the light ________________.
  9. The newcomer sat down at the ________________ of the table.
  10. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  11. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  12. Heather can grow to a ________________ or so tall.
  13. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  14. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  15. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  16. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  17. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  18. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  19. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  20. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.
  21. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  22. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  23. The water is too ________________.
  24. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. foot — part of the body
  2. file — a line of people
  3. file — a tool
  4. bulb — for light
  5. file — a document
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. staff — a stick
  8. bulb — for light
  9. foot — the bottom
  10. cold — an illness
  11. jam — a tight spot
  12. foot — a measure
  13. jam — to spread on bread
  14. hand — part of the body
  15. bear — the animal
  16. staff — employees
  17. bear — the animal
  18. cold — the Cold War
  19. hand — in cards
  20. staff — employees
  21. hand — help
  22. bear — to put up with
  23. cold — not warm
  24. jam — in traffic

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