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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: mate · sharp · pit · fine · clip · net · bulb · game

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. How can I extract the audio from a video ________________?
  3. Roulette is a ________________ of chance.
  4. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  5. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  6. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  7. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  8. The pointer is employed to find upland ________________.
  9. Hold the papers together with a ________________.
  10. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  11. That was a fun ________________.
  12. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  13. It seems a cruel thing to ________________ a bird's wings.
  14. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  15. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  16. Have you found your soul ________________?
  17. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  18. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  19. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  20. It's one o'clock ________________.
  21. The light ________________ burned out.
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. He's quite ________________, isn't he?
  24. What was your ________________ profit last year?

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. clip — a video
  3. game — a kind of play
  4. fine — all right
  5. pit — a hole
  6. pit — a fruit stone
  7. sharp — with an edge
  8. game — wild animals
  9. clip — for paper
  10. net — for catching
  11. game — a match
  12. fine — high quality
  13. clip — to cut
  14. net — in sport
  15. fine — a penalty
  16. mate — a partner
  17. pit — in a race
  18. mate — a friend
  19. mate — to breed
  20. sharp — exactly
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — for light
  23. sharp — clever
  24. net — after costs

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