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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.

Words on the sheet
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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: kid · cell · bulb · scale · straw · net · key · mine

  1. She's sitting on a gold ________________.
  2. He was locked up in a ________________.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  5. The kitchen ________________ is next to the microwave.
  6. Nobody expected a disaster on this ________________.
  7. The ball hit the back of the ________________.
  8. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  9. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. This piece is in a major ________________.
  12. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  13. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  14. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  20. What was your ________________ profit last year?
  21. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  22. He took the fish out of the ________________.
  23. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  24. Every pianist practices the C major ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. mine — for digging
  2. cell — in a prison
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. bulb — of a plant
  5. scale — for weighing
  6. scale — size or range
  7. net — in sport
  8. straw — a straw man
  9. straw — to clutch at straws
  10. cell — a phone
  11. key — in music
  12. key — for a lock
  13. mine — an explosive
  14. kid — child
  15. cell — in biology
  16. bulb — for light
  17. bulb — for light
  18. key — the most important part
  19. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  20. net — after costs
  21. kid — to tease
  22. net — for catching
  23. mine — belonging to me
  24. scale — in music

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