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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: bat · bulb · cell · chip · club · pitch · present · pop

  1. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  2. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  3. You don't need to ________________ round.
  4. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  5. Michael Jackson and Prince changed the history of ________________ music.
  6. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  7. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  8. The light ________________ burned out.
  9. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  10. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  11. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  12. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  13. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  14. I've got to change the light ________________.
  15. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  16. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  17. The room was ________________ black, so I couldn't see a thing.
  18. The players ran onto the football ________________.
  19. She's preparing to ________________ her idea to the investors.
  20. He was locked up in a ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  24. We're almost out of ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. present — the time now
  2. bat — in an idiom
  3. pop — to visit
  4. bat — for baseball
  5. pop — music
  6. club — for golf
  7. club — for dancing
  8. bulb — for light
  9. bulb — of a plant
  10. chip — to eat
  11. present — a gift
  12. chip — for betting
  13. club — a group
  14. bulb — for light
  15. cell — in biology
  16. bat — the animal
  17. pitch — completely
  18. pitch — a sports field
  19. pitch — a sales talk
  20. cell — in a prison
  21. present — there
  22. cell — a phone
  23. chip — in a computer
  24. pop — soda

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