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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: pit · spell · bulb · bat · fan · roll · safe · tube

  1. Are you a huge ________________ of trains?
  2. I've got to change the light ________________.
  3. Can you turn the ________________ on?
  4. Grandma has made a Swiss ________________.
  5. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  6. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  7. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  8. How do you ________________ your surname?
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. Is it ________________ for us to be here?
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. The teacher called the ________________ to see who was absent.
  13. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  14. He has no idea where the ________________ is.
  15. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  16. I am not a ________________ of shrimp.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  19. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  20. Tom was very happy that his son returned home ________________ and sound.
  21. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  22. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  23. We're on a ________________ here.
  24. I'll be taking the ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. fan — a supporter
  2. bulb — for light
  3. fan — to cool the air
  4. roll — a cake
  5. spell — a short time
  6. bat — the animal
  7. bat — in an idiom
  8. spell — letters
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. safe — out of danger
  11. pit — a hole
  12. roll — a list
  13. spell — magic
  14. safe — a strongbox
  15. bat — for baseball
  16. fan — a supporter
  17. bulb — for light
  18. pit — in a race
  19. tube — a container
  20. safe — out of danger
  21. pit — a fruit stone
  22. tube — in a tire
  23. roll — on a roll
  24. tube — the underground

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