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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.

Words on the sheet
468
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: bass · cell · rash · spell · present · file · capital · bulb

  1. Don't do anything ________________.
  2. The light ________________ burned out.
  3. A second agreement was made due to the large amount of available ________________.
  4. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  5. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Turn up the ________________ so we can feel the beat.
  9. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. The party suffered for the ________________ of party-switching.
  12. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  13. I've got to change the light ________________.
  14. I play ________________ in a jazz band.
  15. Beijing is the ________________ of China.
  16. The fisherman caught a huge ________________.
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  19. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  20. I seem to be developing a ________________.
  21. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  22. The beginning of a sentence starts with a ________________ letter.
  23. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  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. rash — hasty
  2. bulb — for light
  3. capital — money
  4. cell — in biology
  5. file — a line of people
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. present — the time now
  8. bass — low music
  9. present — a gift
  10. cell — a phone
  11. rash — a series
  12. file — a tool
  13. bulb — for light
  14. bass — the instrument
  15. capital — a city
  16. bass — the fish
  17. spell — letters
  18. spell — magic
  19. file — a document
  20. rash — on the skin
  21. present — there
  22. capital — a big letter
  23. spell — a short time
  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