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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 120 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: game · last · bulb · fine · tube · cold · mouse · racket

  1. The water is too ________________.
  2. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  3. He hit the ball with his ________________.
  4. That was a fun ________________.
  5. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  6. False peace will not ________________.
  7. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  8. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  9. The light ________________ burned out.
  10. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  11. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  12. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  13. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  14. Our cat is sitting in the apple tree, and the birds are making a ________________.
  15. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  16. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  17. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  18. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  19. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  20. I haven't touched a tennis ________________ in years.
  21. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. I've got to change the light ________________.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. cold — not warm
  2. fine — high quality
  3. racket — for tennis
  4. game — a match
  5. bulb — of a plant
  6. last — to go on
  7. last — final
  8. cold — an illness
  9. bulb — for light
  10. game — a kind of play
  11. fine — all right
  12. mouse — the animal
  13. game — wild animals
  14. racket — a loud noise
  15. tube — a container
  16. mouse — for a computer
  17. fine — a penalty
  18. last — finally
  19. cold — the Cold War
  20. racket — for tennis
  21. mouse — the animal
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. bulb — for light
  24. tube — the underground

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