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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: chest · mine · mate · rest · spell · bulb · cell · suit

  1. When will it ________________ you to start?
  2. She laid her head on my ________________ so she could listen to my heartbeat.
  3. The ________________ of the members were all out of tune.
  4. I would like to have a ________________ here.
  5. Have you found your soul ________________?
  6. Because of the accident, he'll have a limp for the ________________ of his life.
  7. The cuffs of his ________________ jacket are badly frayed.
  8. I felt an uncomfortable tightness in my ________________.
  9. Positive actions can inspire others to follow ________________.
  10. The lid of the ________________ creaked open.
  11. I met an old friend of ________________ the other day.
  12. The light ________________ burned out.
  13. We've had a long dry ________________ this summer.
  14. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  15. He asked the witch to reverse the ________________.
  16. Excuse me, sorry ________________, you haven't got the time have you?
  17. How do you ________________ your surname?
  18. I've got to change the light ________________.
  19. He was locked up in a ________________.
  20. He was blown up by a land ________________.
  21. Males and females first ________________ when two years old.
  22. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. She's sitting on a gold ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. suit — to fit
  2. chest — of your body
  3. rest — what's left
  4. rest — a break
  5. mate — a partner
  6. rest — what's left
  7. suit — clothes
  8. chest — of your body
  9. suit — in cards
  10. chest — a box
  11. mine — belonging to me
  12. bulb — for light
  13. spell — a short time
  14. cell — in biology
  15. spell — magic
  16. mate — a friend
  17. spell — letters
  18. bulb — for light
  19. cell — in a prison
  20. mine — an explosive
  21. mate — to breed
  22. cell — a phone
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. mine — for digging

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