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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 in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The little girl was crying for the teddy ________________.
  2. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  3. It's best to wear a ________________ on your head during the cold Moscow winters.
  4. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  5. The light ________________ burned out.
  6. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  7. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  8. That was ________________ to happen.
  9. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  10. The polar ice ________________ is melting.
  11. Many happy returns to all who ________________ the name of a flower!
  12. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  13. A black ________________ roamed the forest.
  14. I had a bad ________________ and was in bed for a week.
  15. Its rival in the ________________ War, the Soviet Union, exploited this at the time.
  16. It's one o'clock ________________.
  17. I've got to change the light ________________.
  18. Can you put the ________________ back on the pen?
  19. This knife is not ________________ enough.
  20. He reached out and took down a small leather ________________ book.
  21. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  22. The water is too ________________.
  23. We are ________________ to obey laws.
  24. He's quite ________________, isn't he?

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

Answer key

  1. bear — the animal
  2. stem — to come from
  3. cap — a hat
  4. stem — a stem cell
  5. bulb — for light
  6. bulb — of a plant
  7. wax — in the ear
  8. bound — certain
  9. stem — of a plant
  10. cap — of ice
  11. bear — to put up with
  12. wax — to grow
  13. bear — the animal
  14. cold — an illness
  15. cold — the Cold War
  16. sharp — exactly
  17. bulb — for light
  18. cap — a lid
  19. sharp — with an edge
  20. bound — tied together
  21. wax — for sculpting
  22. cold — not warm
  23. bound — obliged
  24. sharp — clever

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