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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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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: fork · chip · cold · bay · jam · swing · content · bulb

  1. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. Check the label for the sugar ________________.
  4. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  8. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  9. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  10. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  11. My mare is ________________ in color.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  15. Buy me a box of chocolates and I'll be ________________.
  16. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  17. The coach helped Matthew straighten out his golf ________________, improving his game.
  18. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  19. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  20. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  21. David sat on the ________________.
  22. In jazz, ________________ was gradually being replaced by bebop.
  23. TikTok makes it very easy to create ________________.
  24. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.

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

Answer key

  1. bay — a part of the sea
  2. cold — an illness
  3. content — the amount
  4. fork — a garden tool
  5. bulb — for light
  6. cold — not warm
  7. bulb — of a plant
  8. chip — to eat
  9. jam — a tight spot
  10. fork — to eat with
  11. bay — a horse colour
  12. chip — for betting
  13. bulb — for light
  14. jam — to spread on bread
  15. content — happy
  16. bay — to keep at bay
  17. swing — in golf
  18. jam — in traffic
  19. fork — in a road
  20. chip — in a computer
  21. swing — to play on
  22. swing — music
  23. content — videos and posts
  24. cold — the Cold War

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