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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: club · saw · dip · bulb · pit · craft · cell · cold

  1. The light ________________ burned out.
  2. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  3. I like to ________________ a cookie in coffee.
  4. He works in a ________________ mill.
  5. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  6. I've got to change the light ________________.
  7. The ________________ was so hot, it burned my tongue.
  8. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  9. He was locked up in a ________________.
  10. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  11. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  12. I belonged to the harmonica ________________ in my high school days.
  13. My rich neighbors belong to a private golf ________________.
  14. We ________________ that the plan would end in failure.
  15. Later, his shop becomes a ________________ with young dancers.
  16. Flower arranging is a traditional ________________ in Japan.
  17. The water is too ________________.
  18. She's very handy with a ________________.
  19. He spent years learning his ________________ as a carpenter.
  20. They watched the sun ________________ below the horizon.
  21. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  22. Small ________________ should stay in the harbor during the storm.
  23. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  24. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — for light
  2. cold — an illness
  3. dip — to dunk
  4. saw — the tool
  5. cell — in biology
  6. bulb — for light
  7. dip — a sauce
  8. cold — the Cold War
  9. cell — in a prison
  10. cell — a phone
  11. pit — a hole
  12. club — a group
  13. club — for golf
  14. saw — past of 'see'
  15. club — for dancing
  16. craft — a handicraft
  17. cold — not warm
  18. saw — the tool
  19. craft — a skill
  20. dip — to sink
  21. pit — in a race
  22. craft — boats
  23. pit — a fruit stone
  24. bulb — of a plant

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