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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: nail · mark · bulb · present · kid · date · chip · straw

  1. My partner was ________________ at the birth of our baby.
  2. The hot cup left a ________________ on the table.
  3. The goat rested comfortably on a soft bed of ________________.
  4. A ________________ is a sweet brown fruit from a palm tree.
  5. Why do cosmetics have an expiration ________________?
  6. Did you get a birthday ________________ for him this year?
  7. Have you settled on a ________________?
  8. She broke her ________________ while washing the dishes.
  9. Actually, the ________________ method has plenty of room for improvement.
  10. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  11. The light ________________ burned out.
  12. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  13. He drove in a ________________ with his hammer.
  14. She got the top ________________ in the exam.
  15. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  16. I've got to change the light ________________.
  17. Don't ________________ yourself. You couldn't afford to buy a house like this.
  18. It always has to be a ________________ man with them.
  19. ________________ my words: he'll be late again.
  20. I had chicken pox when I was a ________________.
  21. The ________________ went through the wall.
  22. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  23. A drowning man will clutch at a ________________.
  24. We've got to handle this with ________________ gloves.

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

Answer key

  1. present — there
  2. mark — a trace
  3. straw — dry grass
  4. date — the fruit
  5. date — on the calendar
  6. present — a gift
  7. date — on the calendar
  8. nail — on a finger
  9. present — the time now
  10. bulb — of a plant
  11. bulb — for light
  12. chip — to eat
  13. nail — for a hammer
  14. mark — a grade
  15. chip — for betting
  16. bulb — for light
  17. kid — to tease
  18. straw — a straw man
  19. mark — to pay attention
  20. kid — child
  21. nail — for a hammer
  22. chip — in a computer
  23. straw — to clutch at straws
  24. kid — young goat (kid gloves)

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