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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: date · bulb · mark · fan · cue · content · cold · capital

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  3. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  4. The water is too ________________.
  5. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  6. You can't play pool without a ________________ stick.
  7. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  8. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  11. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  12. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  13. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  14. When I cough twice, that's your ________________ to come into the room.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  17. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  18. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  19. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  20. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  21. Have you settled on a ________________?
  22. I'll take my ________________ from you.
  23. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  24. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. capital — money
  3. fan — a supporter
  4. cold — not warm
  5. fan — to cool the air
  6. cue — for pool
  7. fan — a supporter
  8. content — videos and posts
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. cold — the Cold War
  11. capital — a city
  12. mark — a grade
  13. mark — a trace
  14. cue — a signal
  15. bulb — for light
  16. date — on the calendar
  17. content — the amount
  18. content — happy
  19. cold — an illness
  20. capital — a big letter
  21. date — on the calendar
  22. cue — a hint
  23. mark — to pay attention
  24. date — the fruit

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