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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 120 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: chest · band · object · pass · cell · fine · bulb · mouse

  1. I've got to change the light ________________.
  2. Why would I ________________ to a disabled ramp?
  3. We wanted to take a walk to ________________ the time.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. I assure you, everything's ________________.
  7. I thought I heard a ________________ in the kitchen.
  8. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  9. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  10. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  11. Thanks to his efforts, he attained his ________________.
  12. He put a rubber ________________ around the bundle of letters.
  13. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  14. A valuable ________________ decreases in value if it is damaged.
  15. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  16. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  17. No doubt you will be able to ________________ the examination.
  18. He's the lead singer in a rock ________________.
  19. You can't go backstage without a ________________.
  20. "I don't like games like this," squeaked the ________________.
  21. He still wears his gold wedding ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. Should I buy a wireless ________________?
  24. He was locked up in a ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. object — to protest
  3. pass — to spend time
  4. cell — in biology
  5. bulb — for light
  6. fine — all right
  7. mouse — the animal
  8. chest — of your body
  9. fine — high quality
  10. chest — of your body
  11. object — an aim
  12. band — a rubber band
  13. cell — a phone
  14. object — a thing
  15. chest — a box
  16. bulb — of a plant
  17. pass — to succeed
  18. band — a music group
  19. pass — a permit
  20. mouse — the animal
  21. band — a ring
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. mouse — for a computer
  24. cell — in a prison

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