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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: chip · bat · date · bulb · can · bank · cold · bowl

  1. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  2. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  3. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  4. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  5. The water is too ________________.
  6. The light ________________ burned out.
  7. This ________________ always watches out for its own interests.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. Recycle the empty soda ________________.
  10. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  11. Have you settled on a ________________?
  12. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  13. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  14. I'm going to the ________________ to withdraw money.
  15. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  16. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  17. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  18. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  19. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  20. ________________ you help me carry this box?
  21. I've got to change the light ________________.
  22. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  23. Tom opened a ________________ of soup.
  24. Tiny blossoms have come out all over the river ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bowl — a dish
  2. chip — to eat
  3. bat — for baseball
  4. bat — the animal
  5. cold — not warm
  6. bulb — for light
  7. bank — for money
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. can — a tin
  10. bowl — a football final
  11. date — on the calendar
  12. date — on the calendar
  13. date — the fruit
  14. bank — for money
  15. bowl — to roll
  16. cold — an illness
  17. chip — for betting
  18. chip — in a computer
  19. bat — in an idiom
  20. can — to be able to
  21. bulb — for light
  22. bulb — of a plant
  23. can — a tin
  24. bank — of a river

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