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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: bulb · content · kick · rash · swing · charge · snap · date

  1. David sat on the ________________.
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. ________________ out of it! You haven't done a thing all week.
  4. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  5. You don't have to ________________ at me like that.
  6. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  9. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  10. Have you settled on a ________________?
  11. When I ________________ my fingers, you'll wake up.
  12. Don't do anything ________________.
  13. The light ________________ burned out.
  14. The tickets are free of ________________.
  15. One ________________ from a giraffe's hind leg is enough to kill a lion.
  16. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  17. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  18. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  19. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  20. They were given a penalty ________________ just minutes from the end.
  21. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  22. Jason, who was in ________________ of the project, was dismissed for corruption.
  23. I get a ________________ out of her cheerful personality.
  24. Where can I ________________ my mobile?

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

Answer key

  1. swing — to play on
  2. bulb — for light
  3. snap — to snap out of it
  4. date — on the calendar
  5. snap — to speak sharply
  6. content — the amount
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. date — the fruit
  9. swing — in golf
  10. date — on the calendar
  11. snap — to click
  12. rash — hasty
  13. bulb — for light
  14. charge — a price
  15. kick — with a leg
  16. content — videos and posts
  17. swing — music
  18. rash — a series
  19. rash — on the skin
  20. kick — in football
  21. content — happy
  22. charge — in control
  23. kick — a thrill
  24. charge — electricity

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