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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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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: fine · field · bat · bay · bulb · present · cell · kid

  1. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  3. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  4. My mare is ________________ in color.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.
  7. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  10. He was locked up in a ________________.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  13. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  14. The ________________ hangs upside down in the cave.
  15. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  16. This shop sells ________________ wines and cheeses.
  17. The light ________________ burned out.
  18. The ________________ was stolen yesterday, along with the balls.
  19. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  20. Tom didn't even ________________ an eye.
  21. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  22. I got a ________________ for parking in the wrong place.
  23. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  24. I assure you, everything's ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. cell — a phone
  3. kid — child
  4. bay — a horse colour
  5. cell — in biology
  6. kid — young goat (kid gloves)
  7. present — the time now
  8. field — farmland
  9. bay — to keep at bay
  10. cell — in a prison
  11. bulb — for light
  12. present — a gift
  13. kid — to tease
  14. bat — the animal
  15. field — a subject
  16. fine — high quality
  17. bulb — for light
  18. bat — for baseball
  19. present — there
  20. bat — in an idiom
  21. field — for sport
  22. fine — a penalty
  23. bay — a part of the sea
  24. fine — all right

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