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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 116 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: fan · cap · content · bulb · present · nail · rest · cold

  1. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  2. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  3. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  4. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  5. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  8. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  9. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  10. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  11. The ________________ went through the wall.
  12. The water is too ________________.
  13. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  14. The light ________________ burned out.
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  18. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  19. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  20. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  21. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  22. I've got to change the light ________________.
  23. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  24. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.

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

Answer key

  1. cap — of ice
  2. rest — a break
  3. cold — the Cold War
  4. fan — a supporter
  5. cold — an illness
  6. content — the amount
  7. nail — for a hammer
  8. cap — a lid
  9. nail — on a finger
  10. cap — a hat
  11. nail — for a hammer
  12. cold — not warm
  13. bulb — of a plant
  14. bulb — for light
  15. content — happy
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. present — the time now
  18. fan — to cool the air
  19. rest — what's left
  20. fan — a supporter
  21. present — a gift
  22. bulb — for light
  23. present — there
  24. rest — what's left

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