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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. Plant the tulip ________________ before the first frost.
  2. I cannot shed a ________________ for that horrible man.
  3. The information is stored in a ________________ on my computer.
  4. In my city, the temperature is one ________________ above zero.
  5. The supermarket has a large ________________ of merchandise.
  6. Jarno Trulli was disqualified for passing a red light at the ________________ exit.
  7. Boris sat near the fire ________________.
  8. A university ________________ is the ticket to a successful career.
  9. To what ________________ are you interested in baseball?
  10. What's the difference between broth and ________________?
  11. Drying a ________________ is more honorable than shedding torrents of blood.
  12. We walked down the narrow path in single ________________.
  13. He had ________________ pain while walking.
  14. It is only in accepting others that we can ________________ down our own barriers.
  15. The light ________________ burned out.
  16. The giraffe protected her ________________ with great courage.
  17. He rubbed the rust off with a ________________.
  18. It's not a deep ________________. It's just a scratch.
  19. We ________________ up on opposing sides.
  20. Have you ever swallowed an apricot ________________?
  21. The ________________ market has crashed.
  22. This looks like a gunshot ________________.
  23. The giraffe did all she could to defend her ________________.
  24. I've got to change the light ________________.

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

Answer key

  1. bulb — of a plant
  2. tear — from crying
  3. file — a document
  4. degree — temperature
  5. stock — goods
  6. pit — in a race
  7. pit — a hole
  8. degree — from a university
  9. degree — an amount
  10. stock — a soup base
  11. tear — from crying
  12. file — a line of people
  13. calf — of the leg
  14. tear — to rip
  15. bulb — for light
  16. calf — a young animal
  17. file — a tool
  18. wound — an injury
  19. wound — past of 'wind'
  20. pit — a fruit stone
  21. stock — shares
  22. wound — an injury
  23. calf — a young animal
  24. bulb — for light

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