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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: toast · nail · clip · bulb · firm · bat · chair · shower

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. We took cover from the thunder ________________.
  3. The light ________________ burned out.
  4. I've got to change the light ________________.
  5. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  6. Nothing provides more peace of mind than a ________________ decision.
  7. I put the bag on or beside the ________________.
  8. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  11. After the show, she was the ________________ of the town.
  12. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  13. He's taking a ________________ right now.
  14. James Baker serves as an Honorary Co-________________ for the World Justice Project.
  15. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  16. The ________________ went through the wall.
  17. I'll stand ________________ for what I deserve.
  18. I like lots of butter on my ________________ in the morning.
  19. The dagger's metal was presumably from the same meteor ________________.
  20. I would like to propose a ________________ on your birthday.
  21. She works as an advertiser at a New Jersey ________________.
  22. Professor Sir Peter Hirsch formerly held the ________________.
  23. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  24. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. shower — rain
  3. bulb — for light
  4. bulb — for light
  5. clip — to cut
  6. firm — decided
  7. chair — to sit on
  8. nail — for a hammer
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. bat — the animal
  11. toast — the most admired
  12. bat — for baseball
  13. shower — to wash
  14. chair — a leader
  15. bat — in an idiom
  16. nail — for a hammer
  17. firm — steady
  18. toast — bread
  19. shower — a meteor shower
  20. toast — a drink to someone
  21. firm — a company
  22. chair — a professorship
  23. clip — for paper
  24. clip — a video

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