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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: last · land · present · bulb · staff · kid · rush · mark

  1. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  2. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  3. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  4. The old man leaned on his ________________.
  5. Take your time. There's no ________________.
  6. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  7. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  8. At ________________, we arrived at the village.
  9. You shouldn't ________________ things.
  10. The light ________________ burned out.
  11. Today is the ________________ day of the holidays. Back to school tomorrow!
  12. When are we going to ________________?
  13. Algeria is a ________________ of gas and oil.
  14. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  15. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. That must've been a ________________.
  18. I'm the one who owns all this ________________.
  19. False peace will not ________________.
  20. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  21. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  22. It's hotel ________________. Please let me in.
  23. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  24. The office ________________ worked quickly and efficiently to resolve the problem.

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

Answer key

  1. present — a gift
  2. mark — a grade
  3. present — there
  4. staff — a stick
  5. rush — hurry
  6. kid — to tease
  7. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  8. last — finally
  9. rush — to hurry
  10. bulb — for light
  11. last — final
  12. land — to come down
  13. land — a country
  14. present — the time now
  15. bulb — of a plant
  16. bulb — for light
  17. rush — a thrill
  18. land — ground
  19. last — to go on
  20. mark — a trace
  21. mark — to pay attention
  22. staff — employees
  23. kid — child
  24. staff — employees

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