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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: pit · bay · chip · bulb · squash · cold · season · tube

  1. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  2. Did you ________________ the meat?
  3. The potato ________________ was salty and crunchy.
  4. I want a large ________________ of toothpaste.
  5. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  6. The water is too ________________.
  7. I need a new inner ________________ for my bike tire.
  8. My mare is ________________ in color.
  9. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  10. Algeria has become a bargaining ________________ in a global game of poker.
  11. I've got to change the light ________________.
  12. Cut the butternut ________________ into one-inch cubes.
  13. They retained the League and Cup in his second ________________.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. I'll be taking the ________________.
  16. The president vowed to ________________ the mutiny.
  17. There's a computer ________________ on the table.
  18. The light ________________ burned out.
  19. The sailing ship dropped anchor in the ________________.
  20. Close the lid of the trash can to keep odors and pests at ________________.
  21. I'd like to play a game of ________________.
  22. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  23. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  24. Spring is a pleasant ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. pit — a hole
  2. season — to add flavour
  3. chip — to eat
  4. tube — a container
  5. pit — in a race
  6. cold — not warm
  7. tube — in a tire
  8. bay — a horse colour
  9. cold — the Cold War
  10. chip — for betting
  11. bulb — for light
  12. squash — the vegetable
  13. season — in sport
  14. cold — an illness
  15. tube — the underground
  16. squash — to crush
  17. chip — in a computer
  18. bulb — for light
  19. bay — a part of the sea
  20. bay — to keep at bay
  21. squash — the sport
  22. pit — a fruit stone
  23. bulb — of a plant
  24. season — of the year

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