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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: bowl · date · hand · kid · chip · fork · bulb · season

  1. Did you ________________ the meat?
  2. Do you need a ________________ with that?
  3. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Millions watch the Super ________________ every February.
  7. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  8. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  9. Place the flour, butter and salt into a large clean ________________.
  10. Use a garden ________________ to turn the soil.
  11. We usually eat with a knife, ________________ and spoon.
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. It's your turn to ________________ the ball down the lane.
  14. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  15. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  16. The light ________________ burned out.
  17. We came to a ________________ in the road and had no idea which direction to go.
  18. Have you settled on a ________________?
  19. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  20. He hasn't even shaken my ________________.
  21. Spring is a pleasant ________________.
  22. I got dealt a bad ________________.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. season — to add flavour
  2. hand — help
  3. chip — in a computer
  4. date — the fruit
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. bowl — a football final
  7. chip — to eat
  8. kid — to tease
  9. bowl — a dish
  10. fork — a garden tool
  11. fork — to eat with
  12. chip — for betting
  13. bowl — to roll
  14. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  15. season — in sport
  16. bulb — for light
  17. fork — in a road
  18. date — on the calendar
  19. bulb — of a plant
  20. hand — part of the body
  21. season — of the year
  22. hand — in cards
  23. kid — child
  24. bulb — for light

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